Artifact Baby Making for Dummies
by miekhead
Summary: Sequel to You Can't Unring A Bell. Claudia & Leena steal an artifact to help them on their way. Heavy doses of Myka/HG & their child. Spoilers for Innkeeper's, set around 2022. M for some chaps. Third in The Innkeeper's Caretaker series. Trigger warnings for miscarriage & moral issues.
1. Chapter 1

Okay so here's the naughty fic. Posting it to make myself feel better and hope it does the job cause I'm seriously stuck in a rut. Features some artifact induced…bodily changes much to Claudia's displeasure. Don't read if it's not your thing, and totally NSFW. Set during the same time as You Can't Unring A Bell, 10 years after Innkeeper's.

oxoxo

Leena didn't think she remembered a time when she'd broken into the Warehouse. She hadn't fully remembered the MacPherson fiasco due to the pearl of wisdom's hold on her and if she had, even this seemed a little crazier. But here she was, clutching her wife's hand at eleven o'clock on a Tuesday night, walking briskly through the aisles until they got to the fertility aisle, a two minute walk from where they left the bioelectric Stagecoach. "This is completely crazy." Leena hushed with a rebellious giggle.

Claudia rolled her eyes at how excited the woman was and audibly gulped. "Okay…okay, so… How do you wanna do this?"

"Well which one did Myka and Helena use?" They stared at the shelves, each artifact standing…erect and proud.

"I dunno!" Claudia winced, "I'm not using the same thing H.G used.. .ew…ew, no."

"But we know it's saf-"

"Leena, no." the caretaker shuddered and turned to pace. "I am not using some sex toy that H.G used. That's final." Leena growled at her but let it go. "Okay, so we want to do this together, right? Which means…" She looked at each artifact and read the warnings. "Oh god… Leena, can we do this?"

The other woman pulled Claudia by the hand and trapped her, arms wrapped around the shorter woman's waist. "Are you having second thoughts?"

"I'm thinking…I'm thinking…" Claudia's breath fluttered erratically, "what if we use one of these and I get a penis overnight. What happens then?"

"Then…" Leena cleared her throat, not expecting the frank answer. "Well, we'll deal and deactivate it." She bent down and pressed a slow kiss to Claudia's lips. The kiss grew and Claudia had to pull back with a gasp, feeling a strange surge of energy beckon her to the shelf.

"Fuck…"

"What is it?" Leena frowned.

"This one," Claudia picked up a piece of paper with some hieroglyphs on it, and tried to read the name. "I dunno what it says… What is tha— Oh my god," Claudia took hold of Leena's hand and gripped hard. She felt like her skin was being ripped in two and groaned out in pain, wailing when Leena's arms wrapped around her in terror.

"Claud? Claudia?" She took the hieroglyphic papyrus but Claudia shook her head and hissed out.

"Don't read it!" She panted, "what ever you do, please don't read it." She pulled awkwardly at her jeans and shook her head. The pain had gone, and was now overwhelmed with intense arousal. "Party in my pants has a totally new meaning right now."

Leena's eyes wide and looked down, then hastily looked back up at the digital tag. "Min, Ancient Egyptian god of reproduction. Papyrus reed found in a temple in…Oh…"

"Let me guess," Claudia snarked. "He has a penis," she pulled at her jeans again finding it all too tight. "Leena…we need to go home." Claudia grit her teeth. "Oh my god, we need to go home."

"Home," Leena licked her lips and nodded, searching through the tag for anything scary. "Home," she said again, finally and pulled Claudia by the hand as they walked off to find the bioelectric vehicle. Within 15 minutes, they were back home. The journey home had been pure torture for Claudia who had to pull down her trousers slightly to relieve the pressure. She hadn't looked down until the last leg of the journey. She couldn't. But now, curiosity won out and the fear she'd felt had dissipated slightly. "Yep." Claudia sighed and covered her eyes with a hand.

"What?" Leena had frowned, eyes on the road.

"I have a… a happy stick." Claudia had blurted, trying to keep her hands away from her crotch.

When they were safe in the confines of their own home, Claudia dashed up the stairs, both hands pulling at the belt loops of her trousers until she was in the safety of their room. She pulled on the zipper and slipped her pants down furiously. There it was. Her eyes widened. Wait, was she a he? Did this make her a he? _Please tell me it doesn't make me a he._ She jumped under the bedcovers with haste and watched as Leena cautiously entered the bedroom, a purple glove on her hand. She took the papyrus paper and put it in the bedside table, closing the drawer slowly. "You okay?" She put a static bag on top of the drawer, ready for when they had… finished whatever they were going to do.

Claudia pulled up the sheet, looked down and shook her head. "Leena…" The worst thing was, she was completely turned on. And pretty well hung. And that was completely wrong. Fascinating, but wrong. Leena slipped into bed, slowly removing her clothes until her bra was flung over the edge of the bed.

"This is crazy…" Claudia began to chuckle, covering her mouth and eyes.

Leena pursed her lips and nodded nervously. "I feel like…"

"It's our first time?" Claudia watched Leena's relieved smile. "Kinda is," she smirked and lay back. "Oh man…"

They both blew awkward sighs and stared at the ceiling for at least a minute. "Can you just kiss me?" Leena asked quietly after the silence had gotten too excruciating. Claudia's eyes closed in relief and she nodded, hovering over her wife until she gently pecked at her lips. "That's better," Leena hummed and kissed the woman back, curling her hands behind her wife's head and pulling her on top. Two astonished hazel eyes snapped open when she felt stiffness against her lower belly. "Wow," she broke away with a gasp.

"This is so embarrassing." Claudia whined, unable to stop the rock of her hips, thrusting gently against the other woman's abdomen. She couldn't help but grin though, when Leena's bucked up to meet hers.

"Just pretend it's the strap-on," Leena touched Claudia's lips with a finger, then with her own, teasing her wife gently with her tongue when the agent parted her lips. The sounds of heavy breathing filled the room, Leena reaching up to wrap her hands in her wife's hair. "I don't care what you think, this is the hottest thing ever," she husked and reached down, slipping her hands into Claudia's briefs until she felt the hardness. Both women stopped still, then, after a few settling breaths, Leena rubbed the shaft gently, watching Claudia's eyes close in pleasure.

"It's just us, nobody else…" Leena whispered, a hand rubbing gently around her wife's shoulders, down to her breasts while the other worked on the cock. "Nobody else. No crazy artifact energy, it's harmless. You know I can tell these things. Please, Claudia…"

Claudia snapped out of her funk and reached down, sitting up in bed until she was able to remove her underwear. "I… uhh, I dunno how fast I'm gonna be."

Leena began to laugh, and let Claudia lift her up slightly to remove her panties. "Don't care."

"Using me for my man-juice?" Claudia's eyebrow lifted, then she heard what she said and wrinkled her nose.

"C'mere," Leena whispered and pulled the woman down so that their lips met. Claudia's hand snuck down between them as they kissed, and she slowly ran her fingers up and down Leena's cleft.

The woman moaned and arched her back, widening her legs for more. Using as much lubrication as she could gather in her fingers, she fingered lightly at the firm clit and continued to kiss her until she heard a long moan. "Ready?" Claudia gasped, pressing lightly at her wife's entrance.

Leena nodded nervously, biting her lip. She was more than ready, but this was one of the scariest things she'd ever done. Even when she had had affairs with men over thirty years ago, she had always been so careful, always used protection, and yet here she was… no birth control pill, no condom, ovulating and about to have sex with a penis, sure it was her wife's penis (she would never get over that fact) but it was what it was. The fear she felt, however was exhilarating beyond belief. Dark eyes stared down at her, a thumb stroking at her cheek softly. "Honey?" Claudia noted the distraction in Leena's eyes and kissed at her lips roguishly, humping gently against the innkeepers crotch.

"Do it," Leena nodded, the arousal beginning to soar as Claudia stimulated her further. "Please." Claudia grinned and reached down, pressing herself inside.

"Oh fuck…" she gritted her teeth and closed her eyes tightly. "This…this is… oh fuck this is amazing. I mean, I mean I knew it would be awesome… but oh my god. Leena… awesome." She moaned jubilantly, "So awesome, like, more awesome than the stra—" Her mouth was clamped shut by Leena's hand who chuckled with a shake of the head.

"Shut up," Leena gripped the woman's neck tightly and pulled her down for another kiss. "Fuck me."

As she said it, Claudia felt her wife tighten considerably and groaned. Burying her face into her neck, she pulled back her hips and sunk into her. The feeling was sensational. When she heard moans for more, she thrust a little harder and felt a yearning to go faster. "Can I… Need to…"

"Do it," Leena's hips bucked as Claudia's fingers circled at her sex. "Whatever it is, do it," she groaned and clutched the redhead tightly against her chest, gasping out when Claudia lifted her breast with her hand and sucked on her nipple. Claudia's hips pumped faster and faster. Everything from the waist down felt warm, and wet… wonderful even, but it couldn't last. Overcome with sensation, Claudia penetrated her for as long as she possibly could before her head swam suddenly and she collapsed on top of the innkeeper, panting and gasping and feeling as if she were about to faint, orgasmic release completely overwhelming her. _Best artifact ever, _she thought to herself as her floppy body relaxed further. Slackly, she got up on one arm and used her other hand to reach down between them and bring Leena to a climax. The other woman bit at her shoulder, and clutched at her arms until she spasmed and came silently, still holding her in a death grip. Finally, Claudia felt she was able to relax and had no objective to move or pull out of her wife. Once more, the sound of heavy, slow breathing filled the room until Leena let out a small laugh. Claudia tried to stay neutral but the situation was too farfetched, she couldn't ignore the rumble of laughter that was threatening to leave her chest. She snorted and buried her face into the curly hair, kissing at Leena's neck occasionally and gently thrusting until she found herself too sensitive and she pulled out. Taking a brief look down, she visibly shuddered and faked a gag. "Have you seen the size of this freaking thing? I look like an alien!"

"How is that 'thing' any different from the 'thing' in the underwear drawer?" Leena smirked, her eyes closing. The smirk turned into an adoring smile when Claudia took a pillow and propped it underneath her backside to keep everything in. Just like the internet had said.

"You know… this might not work, right? You know that?" Claudia said quietly. Leena nodded and rubbed at her face, feeling a little silly with her lower half up in the air.

"Claud?"

"Hmm?" Claudia settled down next to her and drew the covers up.

"Did umm…" Leena rolled her eyes, visibly disturbed. "Can't believe I'm about to say this. Did anything, you know… come out, when you… you know?"

Claudia tittered and smooched her cheek. "Something definitely came out." She leaned over and grabbed the purple glove, then opened the drawer and took out the piece of parchment. "Goodbyyye penis," she would have crossed her fingers if she could and threw the artifact into the static bag. A large spark flared around her fingers and she ducked. "Owww!" Zipping up the lock on the bag, she threw the bag on the floor before grabbing herself between her legs. "Frakin' thing zapped my crotch!"

Leena chuckled, stroking her wife's side lazily. Her eyes dropped. "Your very female crotch," she added. Claudia looked down and opened her mouth in shock.

"I'm a girl!" She grinned widely, relief threatening to make her feel like she was about to black out.

"Should I be surprised? Told you this one wasn't dangerous." Leena smiled, feeling strangely tired.

Claudia flopped down on top of her and grinned. "I love you and your crazy aura artifact reading skills."

"Love you and your slightly unorthodox baby-making skills." Leena's eyes gleamed hopefully. She welcomed the kiss that was delivered to her lips and smiled.

Claudia's head rested on her shoulder as they began to wind down. "I hope this works," she murmured.

Leena's hands continued to stroke gently at her back. "Me too… though we can try tomorrow… and the next day."

"Horny freakazoid." Claudia grumbled but added a sly smile for good measure. "Now we know how it works. Any….side effects?" She felt Leena shake her head.

"Looked it over while you were… umm changing." the darker woman smiled. "Think we're good to go. Is it… is it still there? You know… after we snagged."

Claudia cringed, having waited for the question. She dipped her head down and had took a look between Leena's legs, feeling as if she were waiting for a scary monster to jump out at her. Sperm was sperm, it scared the crap out of her, even if it was her own. "Yep," her head flew up and she nodded, wide eyed. "Definitely still there. Oh blegh!" She convulsed dramatically. "That is just…ughhh." she lay down with yet another flop.

"I'm the one with it inside me," Leena rolled her eyes, then rubbed them with a fist before she took the diaphragm out of its packet and reached down to slip it in.

"True," Claudia laughed. "You're sleepy," she kissed her wife's breast.

Leena hummed the affirmative. "You knocked me out."

The caretaker chuckled and pulled up the covers. "You okay to sleep like that?" Leena nodded again and mewled slightly when Claudia moved off of her to lay down on her own side of the bed, one arm wrapping around her middle. "Night, sweetie," Claudia hushed and kissed her wife's shoulder, hearing the deep breathing deepen further. Pulling up the covers when she decided Leena was fully asleep, Claudia took one more look at herself to make sure that she was in fact female. She grinned and moved her hand further down Leena's belly, closing her eyes and daydreaming about what would happen if this worked. They'd be a family. Sure, the Warehouse agents were already a family, but they would actually be a family with a child they could call their own. She blew out a held in breath and smiled, her thumb rubbing slowly just below her wife's belly button, as if trying to coax nature to take its course.

Leena moaned in her sleep and rolled over, her hands pawing at Claudia's chest for a cuddle. She chuckled and rolled onto her back, putting her hand through Leena's hair when the innkeeper nuzzled her shoulder, using it as a pillow. Leena was never that clingy in bed. She usually got overheated and pushed Claudia away, but tonight, obviously she needed comfort. Claudia found herself pinned to the mattress when Leena's thigh draped across the lower half of her body. Claudia whined, realizing there and then she wasn't going to sleep very well tonight. It didn't really matter though, her wife was being snuggly and that was a rarity, so she'd just have to damn well accept it.


	2. Chapter 2

Irene Frederic was often a little conflicted when it came to personal use of artifacts. Artie's use of P.T Barnum's Top was still causing him havoc each year, and thus, she thought a further punishment would be unnecessary. Even she had at times used artifacts to get what she wanted. When Claudia Donovan arrived on the scene some 13 years ago, the teen was unstoppable and had even begun to carry such artifacts around on her tool belt, things so materialistic like the freezing snow globe, that it was hard to punish her. So when Irene found Min's papyrus scrap in her daughter's bedroom nightstand, to say she was shocked was an understatement. It meant that she'd also learnt far too much information about her daughter's marriage to Claudia. She shuddered and took out a static bag, before sealing the artifact up and putting it into her purse. She was fortunate to not have read the hieroglyphs, having discovered the missing artifact within the Warehouse. Using artifacts as marital aids was not at all in any circumstance acceptable. The Regents would definitely have something to say about this.

Mrs. Frederic walked silently down the stairs of the B&B and followed the sound of squealing until she was in the kitchen. Leena stood with Lillian on her hip, smiling as she bent down to pick up a tea-towel with a wince. Irene's eyes narrowed and she watched as her daughter handed the baby a breadstick from the counter to gnaw on. Soon, she stood and turned slowly, having sensed a shimmer behind her. "Oh! Hi… Sorry, I didn't know you were coming. I just put on some tea-"

"Funny, isn't it?" Mrs. Frederic began, "How you can sense me, but you can't even sense yourself?"

Leena frowned and looked down at the child against her hip who was excitedly batting her breadstick against her shirt. "I'm sorry?"

"Leena," Mrs. Frederic sighed and pushed herself up off the cabinet, moving across the room until she stopped and took Lillian into her arms before sitting down. Lil's lip pouted as if she were about to cry, then gave up and peered curiously at Mrs. Frederic as she sat on her lap, caretaker and baby having a staring match. "May I suggest a pregnancy test?"

"Wh-what?" Leena's eyes widened and she looked down at herself, her mouth moving constantly to try and force out a string of excuses. "I'm not… at least, I don't think I…"

Irene actually rolled her eyes and looked at the child on her lap. She picked up the breadstick and handed it casually to the infant whose dark green eyes blinked back up at her. "You and Claudia have been trying for three months. At least, that's how long the papyrus reed from Min's temple has been missing from the Warehouse." She reached into her handbag and held up the static bag.

"Oh god," Leena groaned in embarrassment, covering her face. Then, her head darted up. "Wait, I'm pregnant? Am I pregnant?" She watched as Mrs. Frederic suddenly broke a piece of breadstick off for herself and nibbled on it with an inquisitive gaze.

"I think you should call Claudia. Take the day off," the older woman then smirked. Leena's mouth hung open and she looked down at herself. She had been feeling a little bloaty recently. She cupped her abdomen and watched as Mrs. Frederic smile grew warm. Lifting the baby up in her arms, Irene approached Leena and handed her back to the innkeeper, then gave a simple kiss on the younger woman's cheek. "Take the day off. Enjoy." And with that, the woman left the kitchen and disappeared.

Leena's hands shook as she fumbled for her phone, one arm strongly holding Lil against her chest. She walked hastily over to the living room where she lay the 7 month old on her play mat and held the phone against her ear.

Claudia had looked at the caller I.D and answered with her newly custom, "Badlands Sperm Bank, you spank it, we bank it… how can I help?" Leena swallowed heavily, causing the assistant caretaker to frown at the silence.

"Leena? Honey?"

"Can you come home?" Leena sniffed, finding herself completely overwhelmed.

"Come home? Wh… Leen? What's going on?" Claudia looked around the empty office and sat up hastily, pulling off her goggles. She'd had a relatively quiet morning and Myka and H.G had just left to go home, get lunch and spend time with their daughter. "You okay?"

"I umm," Leena watched as Lillian tried to get up on her knees and crawl. _Must. Not. Get. Excited. _"I think we need to take a test."

"A test?" Claudia frowned. "What kind of test?"

Leena closed her eyes and groaned. "Sweetie… a test."

"Oh." Claudia nodded, still confused.. "Oh…Oh! Oh… my god. Okay… oh. Oh." She got off her feet and dashed to the door, typing in the pass code swiftly, cell phone balanced on her shoulder. "You sure?"

Leena sniffled and rubbed her nose. "I dunno… but Mrs. Frederic just came by and either way, your penis has been confiscated. She told us to take the day off and enjoy, whatever that meant, and said she suggested a pregnancy test."

"Oh my god! Oh my god," Claudia shrieked down the phone and ran into the car, putting her speakerphone on. "See you in ten."

"Fifteen. Don't speed," Leena warned.

"Okay, okay, whatever," Claudia rolled her eyes and hung up. She took a breath and looked at herself in the mirror, trying to hold back the whopper of a smile that was worming its way onto her face. "Confiscated penis," she chuckled suddenly and started the car, reversing speedily until she swerved and made her way over to Univille as slow as her restless body could drive her… which of course, was at around 60.

Myka chuckled as Lil crawled up her lap and babbled at her, clapping her hands. Lunch time was the best time in the world… besides bedtime of course. Helena winced hearing another crash in the kitchen as she carried a tray full of lunch for her family and frowned. "Leena, are you sure you're alright?"

"Fine," came the harried voice, another clang sounding through the inn. "I'm fine!"

Myka's eyes bugged out and she welcomed her wife on the couch with her. "What the hell?"

Helena shook her head in wonder, "I have no idea." She took hold of her sandwich and proceeded to watch the little tot grab her own bit of food from the plate with a smile. Lillian merely looked up and grinned back cheekily, before stuffing a carrot stick into her mouth and slobbering all over the place.

Leena paced back and fourth in the kitchen and took out her phone. Claudia was literally just about to put her key through the door when her phone buzzed and she pressed it to her ear, answering. "What is it?"

Leena hissed and lowered her voice. "We are out of tests. We used them up."

"So?" Claudia shrugged defensively, then caught the reason for Leena's silence. "Oh no… no, no no. I am not going to the store."

"Please," Leena whined. "It's your turn."

"You know how embarrassing it is? Leena, everybody knows us. They know we're married. Nope. Not doing it."

"Clau-"

"Not even," Claudia shook her head defiantly, running her finger around the handle to the front door. "Ask Myka and Helena if they have any left."

"What?" Leena whispered loudly. "How will that make things any better? Any less embarrassing?"

"Oh… oh yeah. Wait," Claudia rolled her eyes at herself and thought on her feet. "Okay, go upstairs… go into their room and see if you can find any."

Leena grit her teeth. "I am not going around stealing pregnancy tests," the innkeeper seethed.

"Fine, go buy one." Claudia shrugged. "Look, I'm outside the house, I'm coming in, okay? Go upstairs, I have a plan."

"I don't want to steal anything…" Leena pouted.

Inside, Claudia danced at the grumbling tone. It was so unlike her wife. _She is so pregnant. _The assistant caretaker could feel her face flare and she gave a deep sigh. "Listen, sweetie go upstairs. I'll steal one, it's fine… just go upstairs, stomp a little… we'll sort this out."

Leena wiped a tear from her cheek and nodded, taking a shuddering breath. "Bye." She hung up and with slumped shoulders, left the kitchen and trundled up the stairs. Claudia watched her through the window and waited a minute. She turned the key through the door and entered the B&B with a near skip in her step.

"Hey," Myka called out and watched as Claudia plopped the carkeys in the key dish. "You okay?"

"Hey," Claudia nodded with a smile. "And hello to you, too," she sat on the edge of the couch, tickling Lil's foot. The infant squealed and kicked her away. Claudia smiled and looked at the two women. She didn't even have to pretend to be concerned, the agents were laying it all out for her. "What's up?"

There was silence before Myka blurted, "Leena's being weird."

"Weird? How weird?" Claudia feigned concern.

"She's taking everything out on the pots and pans, it seems." Helena's brow furrowed.

Claudia tapped her chin in pondering silence and looked up. "She upstairs?"

Both women nodded worriedly. Cat in the bag. "Thanks… she should be okay," she reassured and left the room. "I should be a detective or something," Claudia muttered to herself as she climbed the stairs. "I kick ass. I would be the best detective this side of the Midwest." She knocked the door gently to find Leena sat in the middle of the bed, meditating. Pursing her lips, she approached slowly and sat opposite her wife, gently taking the woman's hands in hers. Leena didn't even flinch, she just gripped hard and slowly opened her eyes. "Hi…"

"Don't freak out," Claudia whispered.

"Trying not to," Leena nodded, biting her lip.

"Are you late?" the redhead asked gently.

"A day," Leena thinned her lips and nodded slowly.

"Okay…" Claudia lifted the woman's right hand and kissed it. "I'll be back in a sec."

"You're seriously gonna steal a pregnancy test…" the innkeeper shook her head with admiring sigh. Claudia nodded and stood up, unable to leave before delivering a kiss to the top of her wife's head. She slipped out of the room and tiptoed passed the nursery, over to Myka and Helena's room. Silently opening the door, she threaded through the bags of used old baby clothes and gulped. If this was happening, if they were expecting, she'd need the cute giraffe onesie back. At first she checked the underwear drawer. Bad, bad idea. She gulped and pushed it shut with haste. Okay so feminine hygiene products live in the underwear drawer. Along with other things. She wasn't even sure what she'd laid her eyes on, and she couldn't even imagine how it would work. _Moving swiftly on_… She checked each drawer. Nothing. Moving silently over to the chest of drawers containing Lil's diapers and socks and hose, she worked further down the chest until she came to the bottom. "Aha!" Ovulation strips… _basal thermometer_…_Diaphragm__…__oh ewww. Eww. _She grimaced and rummaged through the back of the drawer until her hand touched a box. "Gotcha." She pulled the ClearBlue pack and grinned. Her elation caused her mind to swim a little and she felt a little dizzy from the excitement as she pushed the drawer shut and slunk out of the room with box in hand. When she reentered their bedroom she sighed at the scene in front of her.

Leena was lying in bed, curled up on her side. She wordlessly moved over to the bed and sat down, arms and hands caressing her wife's waist. She waved the test in front of Leena's face and watched as the woman gave a nervous grin. Bending down, she softly kissed Leena's hip, then pulled her up. "Go take it, I can't wait anymore…"

As Claudia's voice shook, Leena gulped and stood up, making her way over to the bathroom. She shut the door, much to the redhead's outrage. "You're not gonna let me in?"

"No!" Leena sat down on the toilet and swung her legs to distract herself. She heard a long whine outside the door. "Shhh, don't put me off."

"Okay," Claudia grumbled, but it didn't stop her from pressing her ear to the door. "Come on, honey… let me in."

"Let me finish!" Leena chortled and finished up, then did what she usually did. She treated it like every negative she'd gotten in the past and washed her hands, placing the cap on the test and letting it lie flat.

"Leeeenaaaa, let me in," Claudia complained, knocking out a beat on the door. Leena smirked and unlatched the hook on the bathroom door and patted Claudia's cheek when a death glare was aimed her way. "So condescending," Claudia grumbled but wrapped her arms around the innkeeper's waist. She groaned as she ran her fingers up Leena's sides, still unable to get over the softness of her wife's skin, even after all these years. Obviously, Leena's body hasn't changed. Beyond the scars, small blemishes and weight fluctuations, Leena's body would always be softer and younger.

"Claudia," Leena warned, but her head moved on its own accord to the side to give the Warehouse agent access to her neck. A tongue swirled across her warm skin and she closed her eyes. "What about the test?"

"1 minute left," Claudia husked, a hand reaching up to fondle at a breast underneath the peasant blouse.

"Okay, okay… enough." Leena pulled away and tried to force herself to breathe. She caught the look of hurt shimmer across Claudia's face and was quick to explain. "I wanna take this in fully. I don't want to be distracted."

Claudia smiled then, and reconnected their bodies, arms resting comfortably under her wife's bust. "Let's look."

"Okay," Leena giggled as Claudia shuffled them forward and they peered at the test. The timer still flashed and both women held their breath. After thirty seconds, Leena shook her head and wanted to stab the test herself. Especially the little flashy timer. "I can't…this is torture."

"It'll change," Claudia gripped her hand. "Keep watching." Blink. Blink. Blink. Blink. Blink. Not pregnant. Claudia watched Leena's shoulder's slump, then realized she was doing the same. She heard the unmistakable sniff and opened her arms, sighing when Leena turned and curled up into the hug. "Shhh, we can try again."

"Mrs. Frederic took it," Leena shook her head and felt a wave of emotion overwhelm her.

"Then we'll get it back," Claudia said forcefully. She felt tears on her chest and tried not to cry herself. "It'll be okay."

Leena pulled back and began to pace. "See what if it's not? What if, for some horrible reason I can't get pregnant. That my body's stuck like this but my time ran out ages ago."

Claudia shrugged. "Then I carry our baby."

Leena paused at the nonchalant attitude coming off her partner and frowned. "Just like that…"

"If it's true, then yes," Claudia hesitantly placed her hands on her waist. "But honestly, why would your time have run out if you're still ovulating, huh?" She pulled Leena closer until the innkeeper had no choice but to be held. "Let's wait a few days, okay? It might be way early… you might still be pregnant."

"Claudia…" Leena sniffled, reaching up to rub her nose anxiously.

"Baby dust," Claudia smiled and wiggled her fingers over her wife's head. "Positive thoughts, okay?" She watched Leena's lip quiver and exhaled, "come here…" She hugged her tightly, and hushed in her ear. "Tomorrow, we'll head to Rapid City. Take the day off, go see some things and buy a trunk full of tests." Leena merely sighed.

"Deal?"

The innkeeper lifted her head and nodded sadly. "I thought this was it."

"I know," Claudia soothed and pecked her on the lips. "You wanna go take it out on Super Mario?"

Leena wiped her eyes with the tissue that her wife had handed her and grumbled, "Okay… but only if I get to use your game."

"What? Wait no… that's not fair," Claudia shook her head. Her eyes widened at the heartbreakingly sad expression on Leena's face and she sighed. "Just…don't save. Unless you get really far." The innkeeper gave a reserved smile, verging on shy, and sat on the bed as she started up the television. Claudia watched her for a minute, then made her decision and bent down to kiss Leena's forehead before excusing herself from the room.

When she went downstairs, Myka and Helena looked harried, getting ready to leave. "Will you take her? Artie just called us in, said there's a problem in Aisle 31. Something about a manic pumpkin or something, I have no idea…"

"Sure," Claudia nodded, and took the child from them, smirking when Lillian screeched angrily at leaving her mother's arms. "I'm going to town for supplies. Need anything?"

"Not for me," Helena chirped, shouldering her bag.

"Do you even need to ask?" Myka laughed and kissed the woman's cheek, then her baby's. "Should be back for seven."

Claudia chuckled and watched them leave. "So… you're coming with me." She juggled Lil on her hip and mirrored the wide smile on the infant's face. "God you just get cuter, huh?" Lil squealed and clapped her hands as she was put in her little coat and hat. "Let's go get some Twizzlers for your mommy and some tests for Aunt Leena, huh? Claud and Lil's big adventure," she wiggled her fingers against the child's and rolled her eyes. "I am turning into a mushball." She clipped Lillian into her car seat and propped it by the door. "Honey?"

She called up the stairs and heard the distracted, "Yeah?"

"Me and Lil going to the store, you need anything?"

"Chocolate!" came the call back.

"Oookay," Claudia scoffed and shook her head with a chuckle. That could have meant anything. Could mean that her wife was due her period any second, could mean she was pregnant. Could just mean she needed chocolate. When she got to the dollar store, she was glad of the other distracting items in her basket from the several boxes of home pregnancy tests.

The man at the desk didn't even look twice, obviously bored with his job and scanned each item. She was glad that she didn't know him. _Must be new_. "Cute kid."

"She is, isn't she?" Claudia looked down at the child strapped to her chest and chuckled when Lil let out an enormous squeal.

He nodded and bagged all the items, then looked up awkwardly after she'd paid. "Good luck."

"Huh?" Claudia frowned, then the light bulb went off in her head and she smiled gently. "Oh, yeah… Thanks."

She held onto her front, supporting Lil's belly like the baby needed any more support, then left the store and proceeded to strap Lillian back into the car. Of course, the little Bering-Wells hated the lack of contact and screamed the whole time, kicking and generally making things awkward for the assistant caretaker. "Why we're trying so hard to have one of you little scraps is beyond me," she rolled her eyes, then paused when Lillian stopped crying immediately and stared directly at her. Claudia felt a little scared at the scrutiny and brushed the baby's head with her thumb. "You got some crazy skill too? Huh?" A babble was her only answer. "What, are you telepathic?" She tapped Lil on the nose and she giggled. "Do you read auuuuras?" she sung and with a grin, got in the car, glad the infant had suddenly perked up. "Do you empathize with your witnesses, is that it? Empathy?" Lil stared back at her, blinking. "Jesus, I am talking to a baby and waiting for an answer." She shook her head and put the car in reverse before maneuvering out of the parking spot and made her way home.

When she got in, car seat in one hand, grocery bags in the other, she heard the hasty running down the stairs and grinned when Leena made a beeline for her chocolate. "A thank you would be nice," she joked, then chuckled when the innkeeper pressed comically loud smooches against her cheek in thanks.

Pete Lattimer seemed to have a radar for snacks. As Leena opened her first Baby Ruth, Pete strolled through the living room, whistling merrily and jangling his car keys around his finger. "Cookies?"

"In the bag," Leena mumbled around her mouthful of peanuts. "Don't eat them all."

Claudia watched as Leena finished her chocolatey snack and washed her hands, then prepared a bottle of formula for Lillian. She handed the bottle over to Claudia who sat down and grinned when Lil squirmed desperately to get her own snack. "Say please," she smirked.

Lillian huffed and shrieked irritably, clenching and unclenching her fists in frustration. When Claudia handed her the bottle, she calmed immediately and brought it to her mouth, suckling the teat with closed eyes.

"You're good with kids," Pete commented suddenly, a mouthful of cookies.

"I'm her godmother… kinda have to be," Claudia smirked.

Pete pondered that for a moment. "You guys ever thought of having kids?" He was unaware of the panicked look Leena shot at her wife but the agent shrugged casually.

"We've thought about it," Claudia nodded, trying to soothe the innkeeper with the calm she felt, knowing Leena would feed on that and use it for herself. "Right?"

"Right," Leena swallowed. "We thought about it."

Pete grinned, "You know how cool that would be? Warehouse team all grown up. All with little kidlets."

Leena sighed then, and rubbed the man's back. Pete had a six-year-old son who lived in Massachusetts. Following a whirlwind romance, he and his then girlfriend, Anna settled down after a year of dating and everybody around the inn was ecstatic when they announced they were expecting. When little Daniel turned two, things got ugly. A string of pings had caused Anna to get completely frustrated with her partner's lack of input into their family and she left without Pete's say in the matter. It had been three years and still Pete was wounded. He had relapsed and had taken to drink, but he was getting better, and Lillian seemed to help with that. Nothing could ever replace his son. He thought about him every day, and skyped him whenever he could, but the little brunette baby sat on the couch with Claudia seemed to be his driving force, his little light at the end of the tunnel. He also knew that he'd at least be reunited with his son at the end of the month when he was able to have him for 6 weeks while Anna went away on business.

The B&B went silent for a while, each person watching as Lillian took her afternoon snack, her eyes closing in bliss. Pete rummaged for more candy but his fingers froze when he touched a small box at the bottom of the bag. "What the…"

Claudia looked up and swallowed heavily. _Please don__'__t tell me I left one in the bag. Please don__'__t tell me I left one in the-_

"Is one of you pregnant?" He asked, his mouth wide and a gasping squawk emerging from his throat.

"Claudia!" Leena cried out in frustration.

"What? I thought I got rid of them all…" She looked at Pete and sighed. "Okay, we're trying but please," she begged. "Don't tell a soul. We're not ready to tell anybody."

Pete nodded, bewildered and mutely gave Leena a hug, then looked at Claudia and held his hand up for an air high five. "Hooo…" He breathed, shaking his head and he rubbed the back of his neck. "You guys are gonna be the best parents, you know that right?" The couple glanced shyly at each other, then Claudia looked down at her goddaughter who was starting to fall asleep.

"We hope so," came the jittery reply from Leena.

With dinner being cooked and Lillian keeping the three adults entertained, Claudia noticed that her wife had calmed considerably and was pretty much back to her sickeningly bubbly self. The caretaker kicked up her feet and grinned widely. She hated that she loved Leena's natural, wise self, but she did. And she was married to it, so she'd just have to deal. The redhead, whose hair was now a little more chestnut than her old fiery mane, was interrupted in her thoughts when two grumpy looking women entered the B&B with matching scowls on their faces… covered in pumpkin seeds.

"You know what?" Myka declared to the room. "I hate Halloween. Yep, Halloween can suck it."

Helena shook her head. "Says the woman who insisted she dress up as a ham so she could be Scout."

Myka pointed angrily, "This is different, and also… I didn't know how strong schnapps were before I came up with that idea," she huffed. She'd never forgive Mrs. Frederic. Ever. "And anyway, that was three years ago. I hate Halloween."

Claudia sighed and got up, "Really? 'Cause I thought you'd kinda like this," she approached the coffee table and got out a baby-sized pumpkin costume. Dollar stores were actually kind of awesome.

Myka slitted her eyes. "I hate you."

"You're welcome," Claudia chuckled as she watched Helena flick some more pumpkin seeds out of her hair.

"God it's cute," Myka finally admitted with a restrained squeal.

"No, no," Claudia shook her head. "It's fine, I can take it back. You don't like pumpkins."

"But…" The older agent looked over to the rocking chair where Pete was sat with Lillian in his lap watching TV and pointing out every single ninja turtle, naming each and every one as they popped up on the screen. "But she'll look so cute as a pumpkin! She's my little pumpkin…" Claudia dangled the costume in front of her and smiled when Myka snatched it. "Claudia, you are the best."

"I know," the woman in question brushed down her collar and tried to wipe the smile off her face when they left and she felt Leena's arms wrap around her middle. "Hi."

"Hey there," Leena replied softly.

"You calmed down?" Claudia felt the nod against the back of her neck and turned her head to deliver a kiss to her wife's cheek. "Anything yet?" she whispered.

"Nope." Leena shook her head and disengaged from the embrace. Claudia could have slapped herself as she watched the innkeeper begin to pace around the living room, as she cleared away glasses and bits of mess from Lil's dinner.

"Leena…" Claudia sighed. "Come on…"

"I'm fine," Leena excused. "What, I can't clean?"

"No, no… go ahead, I-" the agent rolled her eyes and edged further towards the kitchen where she could at least have a bit of peace. Pregnant or not, this guessing game was getting damn annoying. She didn't understand how anybody could possibly do this for three or more years, let alone three to four months.

With dinner on hold for another half an hour, Myka and Helena took Lillian upstairs for a bath, then showered themselves. When all the pumpkin seeds and pulp had disappeared and Lillian was clean, happy and sleepy, the women settled on the bed to read their daughter a story. Though Lillian wouldn't understand the tale at all, both Myka and Helena agreed that early literary learning was important.

The beef casserole for dinner was finally laid out and eaten. It was a relatively quiet affair, and not as tense as things had been. Myka trotted down the stairs and sat with them, catching up with the food she'd missed while she was putting her daughter to bed.

As bedtime approached, both Claudia and Leena locked themselves away in their bedroom. Neither of them spoke, they just sat side by side on the bed. "I hate how irritable this is making us," Claudia finally broke the silence. "I mean… sure we'll try again, but is this really how our marriage is gonna be if we don't get a kid?" Leena kept quiet, fiddling with her hands. "Sweetie… I love you, okay? But this is making us completely crazy. Plus, it's gonna take a hell of a lot of time to convince Mrs. F to get that damn thing back."

Leena looked down at her hand and traced the wedding ring on her finger. "I know…" She sighed and opened her arms, glad when Claudia leaned forward and pressed herself closer, head rested against her chest. Leena's hand rubbed up and down her back and waited until Claudia let out a frustrated breath and completely relaxed.

"Sucks…"

"It does," Leena sniffed and nodded, then froze.

"What is it?" Claudia pulled back, having felt her wife's body completely tense. Leena wriggled free and slowly got out of bed, then approached the desk at the end of the room where a small box lay. She picked up the piece of paper on top.

'_Consider this a gift. Do not reveal what you are doing to anybody. All my best, Irene._' Leena blinked and opened the box, seeing the papyrus reed from Min's temple lying, waiting.

"What is it?" Claudia asked again, this time more impatient.

"She gave it back" Leena looked up with unshed tears. "She gave the papyrus paper back."

Claudia dashed out of bed and took the box, looking inside. "Holy cow, are you kidding?"

"I'm glad I'm not," Leena smiled. She raised an eyebrow at her wife's lecherous grin.

"Wanna do the horizontal hula?" Claudia wagged her eyebrows.

Leena scoffed and rolled her eyes. "Maybe…" she took the box off of her and placed it back on the desk, "but without this."

"Oh really?" Claudia smirked. Leena nodded and took the woman's hand, then smiled herself and took her to bed. She pulled off the redhead's t-shirt and threw it towards the end of the bedroom. "Door locked?"

"Mm-hmm," Leena pursed her lips and blew out a breath when Claudia slid up closer, pressing their torsos together.

"Why do you wanna have a break? You know… with my special friend."

Leena rolled her eyes and pushed her wife down before settling her own hips against Claudia's. "Can you stop calling it names?"

"No," Claudia shook her head defiantly. "It makes it less creepy. Come on… why?"

"Because I don't love an artifact." Leena frowned. "I love you," she murmured sincerely.

"Awww," Claudia gushed. "That is so sweet."

"Claudia…" Leena sighed.

"Sorry…" the agent smiled and trailed her hands up Leena's belly until they reached her breasts. She pulled Leena down by the neck and they started to kiss, thighs meeting thighs. "Let's get these off." She tugged at Leena's panties but the innkeeper suddenly wriggled away.

"Claudia… just…"

"What is it?" She frowned and pulled away a little, sitting up.

"I don't know… I just," Leena shrugged, not sure what to say.

"You okay?" Claudia rubbed her back, trying not to ping her wife's bra underneath the t-shirt. Maybe the artifact did have adverse effects. With the piece of papyrus in the room, maybe she did feel hornier than usual.

"I feel I… I don't know, yucky or something."

"Yucky?" Claudia smirked. "Like.. Out of commission yucky?"

"Think so," Leena nodded with a grimace. "I'm sorry."

"It's fine," her wife waved it off and lay down with long sigh. "Shit…" The B&B owner merely nodded and wriggled forward for more comfort. "Oh cuddle sex. Is that what this is?" Claudia smirked. Leena chuckled and pinched her belly, but continued to find warmth in her arms. Claudia rolled them over a few times and answered Leena's kisses with pecks of her own until she lay on her back and pulled Leena on top. "You got the tests right?"

"Hmm?" Leena blinked and opened her eyes, trying to act as if she hadn't dozed off. "Sure…sure." She yawned. "Don't think I'll need them."

Claudia's lips thinned. "At least we can try again, right?" She paused at the expression on Leena's face. "Right?" The innkeeper nodded silently and refused to hold her gaze. "We'll try again," she repeated, lifting Leena's face by the chin. "Okay?"

"Okay," she sniffed after Claudia kissed her lips and lay back down.

"Night, sweetie."

"Goodnight, Claudia." Leena whispered, rubbing a tear away from her eyes with her arm.

Claudia heard the crack in her wife's voice and rolled her over until she was able to hug her from behind. "It'll be okay." Leena nodded, sniffling quietly until she followed her partner in sleep.


	3. Chapter 3

Hi guys, so even though I'm a little baffled, people like this fic and I'll be carrying on with it. It's so weird to write Claudia as a thirty-year-old but I hope I've done it justice and that though she's matured, she's still the Claudia we know and love. Tell me what you think! Enjoy :)

xoxoxoxoxox

Three days had passed and Leena was still late. When she woke up, she knew that a) she was freezing, and b) she needed to pee, really, really badly. The first thing in her mind was the tests and she shook her wife awake, much to Claudia's dismay. "Leamme 'lone!" the woman grouched from under their duvet and curled herself up.

"Claud…"

"It's too early!" she huffed, kicking her legs. To be quite honest, she had no idea what time it actually was, but it felt too fucking early.

"Claudia, I have to pee!" Leena's tone was desperate, and soon the fog began to clear.

"Pee?" The duvet was thrown away and Claudia sat up in bed hastily, rubbing her eyes. "I'm awake."

"Good…" Leena jumped out of bed. "Cause I can't hold on much longer!" She crossed her legs and crab-walked to their en-suite where she frantically grabbed a sterile cup, unwrapped it and promptly relieved her bladder.

Claudia followed suit with the bag of pregnancy tests until they were both huddled, shivering next to the shower. "Claudia?" Leena was pissed. She sounded pissed.

"Yeah…"

"These are ovulation strips." the innkeeper was growling, still half asleep but understandably grumpy.

"Are you kidding me?" Claudia snatched the box and slapped her head in frustration. "Oh crap…"

"How can you even…" Leena shook her head and pointed to the box. "Ov-u-lation. How the fuck did you not know?"

Claudia smacked her lips sleepily and grumped, "You try buy pregnancy tests in Univille next time. Then you'll know how it feels."

Leena put up a hand and pinched her nose. "We're not fighting." she took a breath. "It's okay. If it's positive, something's going on right? That's what I read." She looked at her wife. "Right?"

"I don't know!" Claudia shrugged. "Wait, really?"

"Oh god, why am I even married to you?" Leena groaned. "Okay… let's do this."

"Wait," Claudia shoved an arm in front of her as she remembered and smiled. "Back in a second."

Leena rolled her eyes and watched Claudia dash out, then turned back to the cup and dipped two ovulation tests into it.

When she came back, Claudia was wrapped in a fluffy dressing robe and two boxes in her hands "I umm… I kinda got these."

Leena looked at the two pregnancy tests in Claudia's arms and let out a wide smile "You are insufferable," she chuckled. "When did you get those?"

"Yesterday, at the drugstore" Claudia mumbled. "I bought some Calgel for Lil"

"And you got these?" Leena grinned at the two digital tests.

"Turns out using a baby to buy family products makes things a little easier. Still embarrassing though."

The innkeeper gave an incredulous shake of the head and pulled Claudia forward for a kiss. "Sorry…"

"It's okay," Claudia licked her lips. "Sorry for using Lil as test bait."

Leena laughed and unwrapped the first test. "I don't think Lillian really gives a damn." She dipped the pregnancy stick into the urine, waited around 20 seconds and took back to cap it up.

"You are far too comfortable doing that," Claudia grumbled jealously.

Leena shrugged with a hint of sadness. "I've had a long life."

Claudia bit her lip, immediately regretting the snark. Leena never let on about past loves apart from Melissa and the odd teenage fling and though it wounded her at times, she respected her wife's privacy. She also guessed that Leena had some sort of haunted past. "Sorry…" She opened her robe and wrapped the rest of it around Leena too, happy at the soft giggle from the woman. "You wanna talk about it?"

"Not now…" Leena shook her head and watched the timer start up. Blink. Blink. It went on for minutes and Claudia heard the inhale of breath in front of her and rubbed gently on Leena's rib. Soon, the innkeeper broke away and began to pace, rocking back and forth on her heals in trepidation. They stared at the test flickering away as if it had no idea what it was putting these two women through.

Pregnant.

Claudia didn't think she could remember anything. She couldn't remember how to breathe, she had no idea what her name was. All she saw right now was the word, and that inside Leena right now was a tiny, tiny little baby with half her genes. Her child. She was having a child. She heard a squeak and looked next to her to see Leena holding her mouth, her eyes wide in shock. "You did it…" Claudia said quietly after clearing her throat. She picked up the stick and peered at it. 3+. That meant weeks, right? Weeks…

Leena's face wore no expression. Okay, her eyes were wide with shock but that was it. She sniffed and pulled Claudia to her, hugging her tightly. Claudia's grin was wide and she rubbed her back, then heard the hysterical giggle from over her shoulder. "You okay?" she chuckled and looked at her wife who was now holding onto the pregnancy test for dear life. Leena nodded and tried to hold in another laugh but it was impossible. She laughed so hard that after a few minutes her ribs were sore. "Leena…" The innkeeper waved her hands in front of her face to stop the tears of laughter once she'd calmed down. Claudia's hands settled on her hips. "Woah there, Woody Woodpecker," she grinned. "Breathe…"

"We're having a baby," it came out more as a question and Leena's lip quivered.

"We are." Claudia took advantage of their almost identical height and closed the small amount of distance to peck her lips. Slowly, she bent down and knelt on the floor, then slowly peeled up Leena's sleeping t-shirt. She looked up, tears brimming her eyes. "Hey there little… blob."

"Blob?" Leena's eyebrows raised but her hand never left Claudia's hair.

"Globule?" Claudia winced as her hair was pulled. She giggled. "Dewdrop."

Leena sniffled. "I like that."

"We're not calling our baby Dewdrop." As soon as she said it, the situation began to get a little more settled into Claudia's mind and she covered her mouth. "Oh…"

Leena was ready to burst into tears. She nodded and rubbed her eyes. "Oh is right."

"You're pregnant." Claudia sat on the floor with a thump, not even caring that it hurt her ass. "I did that… I… I got you pregnant?"

"Are you asking if I've been unfaithful?" Leena said with a smirk. She looked down at the two ovulation strips, bright pink lines, so much darker than the control lines. "Definitely pregnant."

Claudia's mouth dropped open. "You are pregnant." she said slowly. "I got you up the duff.. Bun in the oven… Oh my god." She jumped up. "I… oh my god." She pulled Leena forward and hugged her again, tighter this time, like she was scared of letting her go.

The next day, while everybody was at the Warehouse apart from Myka who agreed to hold back and take care of her daughter , Leena snuck off to the medical center and met Claudia half way. "Ready?" Claudia locked the Prius and watched as Leena approached with shaky legs.

"Yep," Leena nodded. "Hate needles."

"I know," Claudia sniggered and wrapped an arm around her back.

"Where did you say you were going?" Leena smiled as they walked into the clinic.

Claudia snorted. "Told them I was going to the dentist." Leena tutted and announced the appointment and was told to sit down.

Thirty minutes later and Leena had a little band-aid on her arm as the nurse took the blood vials away for testing.

"We'll call you as soon as they come back, should be around 2-3 hours." the woman said, handing them a pamphlet with contact numbers and more information. Leena nodded hastily, taking deep breaths. "Calm down," the nurse let out a small laugh, "you've got this far already, you've taken a few tests, they're all positive, odds are you are pregnant. Sit tight, okay?"

"Okay," Leena smiled finally, letting out a sigh when Claudia's hand fit into hers. Claudia did her best and tried to keep her wife as calm as possible but it was hard. Leena was so damn excited about the test results knowing that if her own blood told them she was in fact pregnant it would make this all more real.

Claudia and Leena got the call two days later to say that they were indeed expecting, that Leena was six weeks gone and it would be good for them to get in touch with an OBGYN as soon as possible. They were the longest two days that Leena had ever had, and Claudia had to try and keep her wife as calm as she could. And that wasn't easy. For three days they hummed and hawed before coming to a fixed decision. "Artie?" Claudia sighed at the old man who was fast asleep in his office chair. She shook him awake. "Artie?"

"Wh…what?" He blinked and looked around the room then saw her face and smiled. "Oh! Hello."

"Nodding off on the job, I see," she chuckled and perched on the edge of the desk.

"I am 70 years old, I am allowed to catch up on my beauty sleep," He noticed the woman fidget, her hand playing with a pen with a small torch on the end. "What's up, kid?"

She smirked and shook her head. "You always gonna call me that?"

"Always," he said seriously, "Now come on, spill."

"I umm…" she sat up straight and rubbed her face. "Artie, can you ask Vanessa to come by the inn later?"

He frowned and rubbed at his chin. "Everything okay? Is it Lil? Is she sick?" Claudia bit her lip and shook her head. "Leena?"

"In a sense," Claudia groaned. "Artie, Leena's pregnant." She heard the hitch in Artie's breath and squinted her eyes shut.

"What did you just say?" Artie's mouth had dropped and he scrubbed awkwardly at his gray hair.

Claudia opened her eyes and cringed. "Leena's pregnant. We've uhh… we've been trying for a few months, it took so yeah… she's pregnant."

"You…" Artie was completely stumped. "You're having a child together? You're…" he stood up as fast as he could and gave her a hug. "This is unbelievable!"

"You're telling me," Claudia smiled with a shake of the head. "So yeah… we kinda need our trusty old Warehouse doctor to help with all the crazy."

He sat back down, dumbstruck. After a slightly awkward silence he looked up. "It's yours, isn't it?"

Claudia swallowed harshly. "Am I in trouble if it is?"

"No," Artie shook his head. "Well you should be, but I'm not saying anything," he laughed. "Just as long as Mrs. Frederic doesn't find out, I think you're fine."

"She knows," Claudia mumbled.

"She does?" Artie's mouth was wide with shock. His frame was thinner than it had been previous years as age caught up to him, but those eyes were just as friendly when they wanted to be, and now he was positively glowing with happiness.

The redhead nodded with a smile, "She's known for a while. I just… I guess I'm a little freaked."

Artie sighed and stood up, walking around the chair she'd perched herself on until he reached his little kitchen and took out some chocolate fudge that had just set in the fridge. "Don't eat them all," he warned as he set them down in front of her. "You'll be fine. I can promise you that much."

Claudia smirked, but happily popped one in her mouth. "And the award for best grandpa goes to Artie Nielsen." She declared and watched joyfully as his face turned and the realisation kicked in. "What? You don't think this kid's gonna call you Artie, did you?"

"I…I hadn't thought about that," he said, suddenly becoming very quiet, his voice shaky. "She excited?"

"Like a damn Labrador puppy," she smiled fondly. "Anyway…" she clapped her hands together." I'm gonna go for lunch. See you later? With Vanessa?"

"Hmm?" Artie was obviously deep in thought and he nodded his head. "Oh sure, sure… go."

"No more sleeping," she tapped him on the shoulder. "Or at least not at your desk."

"Of course, Ms. Donovan," he croaked back sleepily and rolled his eyes. Artie eased himself up out of his chair and grabbed his walking stick, huffing over to his bedroom.

Claudia watched him and silently followed. "You ever gonna move out of this place?"

"Me?" Artie took off his socks and shook his head frantically. "Oh god no. Never. Could never do that," he insisted.

"And the stairs. You gonna climb them every day even though it's giving you pain?" She rested her arms on the banister, leaning her head against her bicep as she watched him. "Artie, move to the inn."

"What? No!" Artie shook his head. "Someone needs to stay here at all times."

"And you're not the one to do it." Claudia sat down on a chair and cupped her chin with a hand. "Artie…" she sighed. "Pete needs to take over."

Artie flashed a dangerous look over to her. "And what makes you think I can't do this any better than that buffoon?"

"Jeez," Claudia blinked. "Weisfelts really do get meaner as they get older. I'm serious."

"No."

"Yes." Both agents looked over at the source of the voice as Mrs. Frederic stood with a grave expression. She looked almost sorry. "Artie, the regents have discussed it and for your own safety, we think you need to take up residence at the inn. It'll be better for everyone."

"I'm fine!" Artie grumbled.

Claudia pointed to the scrape on his head from a recent fall. "I'm sorry… Really, really sorry but you're not fine. Artie, it's just not safe anymore." The man peered down at his uncovered feet and let out a defeatist sigh. It was one of the most heartbreaking things to watch, Claudia decided. The Warehouse was Artie's baby, but truthfully, he just wasn't up to snuff. "You know what this means though, right?" She wrinkled her nose. "You know how kids are banned from the Warehouse, right? And that… you know how much Lil loves you, and our little dude or dudette will love you?" A tiny smile formed at the corner of the old man's mouth, but his eyes twinkled with tears. She moved over and gripped his hand. "Pete's already said yes… and he promises to be good, and not touch things and not be a putz. This is for you, Artie. You still work here, you still get to do what you do here, but during the day, when there are people around."

"He'll always be a putz." Artie shrugged but tilted his head to the side. "I'll think about it."

"Good," Claudia smiled and gripped his hand harder.

"Why'd you have to grow up so damn fast, huh?" He asked sadly.

She shrugged. "I dunno… Personally, I think it's all your fault." She suddenly looked over at Mrs. Frederic who stood with her arms crossed. "You agree right? All your fault?" Irene simply rolled her eyes at the woman, attempting to hold back the smirk when she heard Artie's jubilant chortle. He loved their quirky little interactions, and was glad that Claudia was basically the only one who could speak to her that way. "Anyway," Claudia took a breath. "I'm going for lunch, you wanna come? Leena's doing a whole crazy salad and cold meat spread. Should be yummy…"

He frowned at her, squinting through his eyes."You twisted my arm," he sighed finally and put his socks back on before they helped him down the stairs towards the umbilicus.


	4. Chapter 4

Hi! So in the middle of all this crazy essay writing, I thought I'd treat you to a new chapter while I took a brief break. Hope you're enjoying the story as it unravels, I must say this was quite a fun chapter to write. I especially love Claudia and Mrs. Frederic's relationship now that Claudia's gone from cheeky teen to cheeky daughter-in-law over the past twelve years. She can get away with murder that girl. Disclaimer: I don't own Warehouse 13 or any of its characters. I just borrow them when I get bored. Anyway, let me know how you're finding it, enjoy!

oxoxoxoxo

When they returned to the inn, they were slightly surprised to see Leena still in her pajamas, grumpily sucking on a popsicle. Mrs. Frederic had come over to eat with them and she shared a perturbed look with Claudia before the assistant caretaker sighed and approached the couch. "You okay?"  
>A shake of the head was all Leena had to answer. She winced and closed her eyes, tilting her head back. Lil was sat in her playpen, squealing and wanting attention as soon as she saw Artie. Claudia scooped the baby out of the pen and handed her over to the old man, who initially grumbled but when the child flashed a huge gummy smile his way, he had no choice but to smile back.<br>Claudia sat down next to her wife and wrapped an arm around her back. "Feel sick?"

Leena nodded, not saying a word. She felt that if she spoke so much as a 'yes,' she'd vomit there and then. Her head dropped to Claudia's shoulder, and only when Artie bumbled a congratulations did she smile dreamily. "Thank you," she whispered, closing her eyes. Nope. No use. She suddenly stood and dashed to the downstairs bathroom before promptly throwing up her red colored cherry flavored treat.

"Oh fun," Claudia exhaled deeply and got up off the couch. She gave an apologetic look to Mrs. Frederic and Artie, then made her way into the bathroom. Instead of angering her wife, she merely reached out and rubbed her hands up and down the innkeeper's back.

"I hate you," Leena spluttered. Claudia heard the smile and dared herself to chuckle.

"Thank you," the caretaker nodded to herself. "I hate you too." It was said in such a gushy, sickly way that Leena thumped her head against the wall and groaned. She smiled despite the nausea.

"I feel sucky."

"I know," Claudia soothed. "Why don't you go lie down?"

"No, I gotta do lunch."

"Ewww, no thank you." Claudia shook her head.

Leena blinked, clearly offended. "Excuse me?"

"I don't want no Pukey McGee preparing my food, thank you very much," she pulled Leena up until she was sat in her lap. "Mrs. F. is making something."

"She's not…" Leena said in disbelief.

"She is," Claudia chuckled and kissed her cheek. "Think you can stomach something?"

"Nope," Leena grimaced and suddenly turned back to the toilet bowl to cough up the rest of the water she drank an hour ago.

"Oh pookenstein," Claudia sighed softly, hands never leaving the woman's back. "Want me to get you anything? Want me to do anything?"

"Don't….call me… pookenstein," Leena let out a spluttering laugh.

Claudia bent down and kissed her wife's shoulder. "Gonna get you some lovely, cool h2o." She quailed at the loud moan and the sudden f-bomb shot her way. "Oookay," she slunk out of the small bathroom with wide eyes.

"How is she doing?" Mrs. Frederic asked curiously as Claudia joined her in the kitchen to prepare a plastic bottle of water.

"Sucky," the younger caretaker said simply, but Irene could sense the excitement in the woman's voice. Nausea was good. Nausea meant everything was working, and meant that Leena was clearly very pregnant indeed. Shaking the leaves of lettuce dry, Mrs. Frederic deftly sliced them with Leena's bright pink salad knife. She popped a cherry tomato into her mouth and rummaged through her purse. Claudia always found it fascinating that both she and Artie had bags with so many items inside, even Mary Poppins would have been jealous. Out came a small dark amber-like stone and the woman held it up between her fingers. "Give her this."

"What is it?" Claudia let the stone drop into her hand and peered at it in confusion.

"Crystallized ginger." Mrs Frederic replied, and continued to chop up the lettuce.

"And it does…?" Claudia asked, rolling her eyes at her mother-in-law who was still so freaking mysterious at times, she wanted to stab herself in the eye, just to see if Mrs. Frederic would react at all.

"You suck it," Mrs. Frederic replied and placed all of the salad she'd chopped up into a bowl. "Granted, it doesn't always work…It should rid the nausea she's experiencing."

"Let me guess, this piece is special," Claudia's nose wrinkled and she held the small strange piece of food in her hand, feeling the heft against her palm. "Doesn't feel edible."

"It's not," Irene replied. "Hence why you suck on it. Don't swallow, don't chew. Tell her that or she'll break a tooth."

"Not even gonna ask," Claudia scoffed and shook her head. "You are something else," she filled the bottle of water to the top, grabbed a separate bottle of Gatorade from the fridge and trudged out of the room leaving Mrs. Frederic to chuckle to herself as she set out a plate of cold meat.

"Here," Claudia sat down opposite her wife who was now leaning against the bathroom wall with her head back and her eyes closed. "Mommy dearest told me to give you this," she smiled gently at the one eye that snapped open.

"What is it?" Leena asked wearily.

"Ginger… but don't swallow it, that's all she said."

"It's a rock…" the innkeeper frowned. "I don't like ginger."

Claudia squawked. "Says the woman who cried two nights ago because she was going to miss sushi. Come on…"

Leena sighed and popped the stone into her mouth and winced. "Spicy…" Claudia's eyes squinted sympathetically and within minutes, she'd sent Leena upstairs to get changed.

When Leena came downstairs twenty minutes later she looked like a completely different woman, refreshed and almost vibrant. Wearing a simple grey polo shirt and jeans, she sat herself down on the couch next to Artie who was enjoying making Lillian laugh. The baby kicked her legs and squealed when Leena tickled her belly. "You okay?" Artie asked awkwardly.

"Fine," she looked down at herself. "Little thing is giving me hell." She said, a blossoming smile spread across her face. She moved the ginger over to the other side of her cheek, amazed that it hadn't shrunk.

"Here," Claudia handed the water over and watched admirably when Leena sipped half of the bottle down. Mrs. Frederic had finally emerged and called the strange little family over to the kitchen. It was a little weird having the mysterious woman about so frequently, but ever since she had found out, or rather, known about the pregnancy, Leena noticed her adoptive mother hovering around a little more, being a bit more sociable. Leena had always wondered whether having children when you were part of the Warehouse was out of bounds, but right now… it almost seemed encouraged. She didn't want her son or daughter to feel pressured in having a life so full of danger, so… lacking in normalcy. As she stared at Lil's little feet kicking away, she felt herself begin to panic. What if her child didn't want a family so farfetched? What if he or she got teased because they didn't have a daddy? What if something happened to Claudia, and Leena had to bring up their child on her own? She froze. At some point in her child's life, Leena would look younger than they did. Her child would grow old…and she…

Claudia had been watching Leena from the corner of her eye. She watched her wife's eyes slowly fill with tears and pulled her close. Closing her eyes, Claudia focused on what her wife was feeling. Over the years of knowing each other, Claudia and Leena's auras had mingled so frequently, that the caretaker had become accustomed to Leena's as if it were her own. "What's the matter?" She asked gently, her lips ghosting over the edge of Leena's ear.

Leena froze and swallowed. "I…I can't do this." she stood up. Claudia thought her wife was going to be sick again, but instead, Leena left the room to go upstairs.

"Ohhh boy," Claudia sighed. "Come here, my little artifact baby," she lifted Lil into her arms and settled her against her hip. "You're coming with me. Back in a nano." She excused herself from the room and walked up the stairs. Lillian was getting a little grumpy, due a nap and teething so Claudia's plan would work perfectly…hopefully. When she opened her bedroom door she was shocked to see the room empty and the bed unmade. "Leena?" She called out. "Where is she, huh?" She looked down at the nearly eight month old infant and watched in complete awe when Lillian suddenly lifted up her chubby little hand and murmured quietly, pointing to the nursery. "Holy…fu-" She stopped herself, eyes wide and her mouth in the shape of an 'o'.

_Just a fluke_, she promised herself but when she opened the door to the inn nursery, she held back a gasp. Stood by the window was a hunched over Leena, a baby blanket in her hand and a thoughtful expression on her face. "Thought I'd find you here…" Claudia lied, which made Leena's eyebrow raise. "Okay… Lil's got some crazy psychic thing going on and she knew you were here." She held her breath. "But that is beside the point. What's up?" Lil was grumbling now, and Claudia was having trouble keeping her quiet.

"I…" Leena's voice was hoarse and a single tear ran down her cheek. "I'm wondering if I did a very selfish thing." She whispered.

"Selfish?" Claudia frowned. "What the frig? What are you talking about?"

"You know…" Leena began to pace around the room, twisting and turning the blanket in her hand. "I get what you mean now… about bringing children up in this world. In our world," she exhaled loudly. "I was so fucking desperate to have a baby, to go through all of this, feel it kick… I just, I didn't think."

"Leena? Stop," Claudia warned in a low tone. Dealing with a self-deprecating wife and a squirmy, sore baby was not the way Claudia wanted to spend her lunch hour. Helena and Myka needed to come home soon.

"No," Leena shook her head, seemingly unruffled by the fact that Lil was now beginning to full on bawl. "This baby, these kids… we've basically just gone 'Here you go, here's your destiny… you'll work in a rusty old South Dakotan Warehouse for the rest of your lives. Enjoy." She spat.

Claudia was in complete shock and rocked Lil slowly, trying to get her to calm down. "Please don't tell me you have so little value for your life, or mine... What we do…"

"Does it matter?" Leena shrugged like she simply didn't care anymore. "You just said it yourself. Lillian is special. Everybody knows that kid is special. And what? You're telling me Irene isn't gonna just pluck her up when she's 21 and say, 'Hey! Come work at our lethal Warehouse under a couple thousand square feet of rock.'"

"Not with those words," Claudia hissed, jiggling her hip to get Lil to shut up. She looked down at the baby who was now red in the face and spluttering in distress. "Take her, I need to think about what the fuck you're saying," she handed the child over and began to pace.

Leena looked down at the slobbering child and felt fear overwhelm her. Claudia was angry. Really, really fucking angry. The redhead gripped her hair, and tried to control her fury. If Lil wasn't in the room, she'd lose it and they'd already be screaming at each other. She hadn't even realized the infant in her arms had now fully calmed down and was letting out tiny blubbers as she looked up at the innkeeper with a trustful gaze. When Claudia finally spoke, Leena was pretty sure the menace in her tone would cause their goddaughter to start crying again. "You made me feel so fucking guilty," she shook her head in disgust. "You made me feel like I was the worst person in the world because I didn't want a child. And now I do, and now I'm so happy," she seethed, "and you wanna take that happiness away from me? Because you suddenly feel guilty and you're freaking out about the future? Is that what you're saying?"

"What?" Leena rolled her eyes. "Of course not. I'm ecstatic."

Claudia scoffed. "Tell that to your face. It looks so fucking content right now."

When they stopped talking, sounds of heavy breathing and infantile snivelling echoed off the walls. Leena had subconsciously started swaying Lil gently in her arms, who was now pressed comfortably against her chest. Her hand rubbed slowly up and down the child's small back. Lil stuffed her little fist into her mouth and closed her eyes as the pain in her gums eased. Claudia had dropped to the floor in frustration, her back falling against the old wall with a resounding thump. She groaned and covered her eyes, then looked at the woman by the window. "Just look at you…" she murmured with a shake of the head.

"What about me?" Leena frowned.

"Just… look at yourself. You're like a freaking maternal superhero." Leena looked down at herself and blushed. Her breasts were stupidly huge, she felt bloated and disgusting and yet Claudia was right. Lillian Bering-Wells didn't care. She knew that the innkeeper was comfy and caring and that was all that mattered right now. "And you're losing your marbles because you think you won't be good enough."

"I didn't say that-" Leena tried to argue.

"Yes you did." Claudia shook her head and stood up, slowly approaching her wife. Lil sleepily held out a soggy hand and Claudia grinned, letting the baby wrapped her fist around her index finger. "You're basically freaking out because you're worried we'll bring our kid up badly, and you're blaming it on destiny."

There was silence until, "I hate how well you know me." Leena sighed, shaking her head.

"Listen," Claudia put a hand on her wife's shoulder and looked her in the eyes sincerely. "This baby…" She paused, still not entirely over the fact that Leena was pregnant. A huge wave of emotion caused her chest to constrict and she both felt and heard her voice tighten. She let it happen. "This baby is going to grow up learning about love, and happiness and comics and games." She watched Leena smirk. "He's gonna choose his own destiny, and he's gonna do whatever he wants in life."

"He?" Leena's eyebrows rose. "Who says it's a he? It's a she."

"Your aura tell you that?" Claudia sniggered.

"Yes."

"Liar," the caretaker snorted. "Roll with me here... This kid is gonna choose whatever the fuck he wants to do in life because we're going to tell him he can. And no Warehouse is going to stop that." As if reading Leena's mind, Claudia carried on. "And no matter what, he's gonna grow up not giving a frak that one day he'll be older."

Leena's lip quivered and she looked down at Lil whose head lay against her breast. She pressed her lips to the baby's crown, the soft downy dark hair tickling her lips. "You promise?"

"Cross my heart. I won't let it happen. I won't let our child do anything they don't wanna do." She smiled. "You're tired."

"I guess I could go for a nap." Leena said as she walked over to the crib to lay Lil down who was now fast asleep.

"Come eat first," Claudia tugged her by the belt loop and led her out of the room. "You'll feel better when you wake up."

Leena stopped still halfway down the stairs and let out a whisper. "I'm sorry I lost it. I… I didn't mean to make you feel guilty, you know that right? I… I really would have gone on just fine if you didn't want kids, I didn't…" she found herself choking back tears and found a palm covering her mouth.

"Shh," Claudia shook her head as she took her hand away. "Don't even bother lying. You want a baby, I want a baby… everything is fine. And I guess I was a little mean just now… it's not worth thinking about."

"I'm sor-" Leena closed her eyes when Claudia suddenly replaced her hand with her lips to shut her up. She reached up and covered Claudia's cheek as she kissed her wife back, her own tears dripping onto her tongue. She felt a hand settle against her lower belly and sighed. "Claudia," she breathed.

"No more drama," Claudia shook her head and kissed her again. "We are not selfish." She rolled her eyes, "I mean jinkies, you really think that funny little girl in that crib up there wants to be the only child of the weirdest family in the world?"

"No…" Leena laughed as they reached the lobby. "True…"

"And anyway, it's too late now," Claudia dropped to her knees and scratched lightly at her wife's tummy. "Right, little globule?"

"Dewdrop." Leena corrected with a smirk.

"My cute little Dewglobdrop." Claudia gushed and smooched boisterously at her wife's belly until Leena had enough of being tickled and pushed her back so that she landed on her ass. Claudia tutted, feigning grumbles and got up again, hugging Leena's waist close and pressing her ear to the woman's tummy. "Can you believe what your mama's doing? She's torturing me," she whispered lovingly. Leena rolled her eyes but couldn't quite keep the grin off her face. "She's getting fat too," Claudia nodded. "Did you know that? This little funny podgy belly poking out over her jeans-" She screeched suddenly when she felt a handful of her hair being scrunched in Leena's fist. "Okay! Owww, okay! I give!" _One last dig. _She had to. "But you know what?" She lowered her voice again, scrunching up her nose. "It's not really you, you're still too tiny. It's just gas and water retention." She murmured, then squawked at the soft slap to her face and looked up with a shit-eating grin.

"You gonna take that back?" Leena's eyebrow raised in a challenge.

Claudia shook her head, her hands stroking the woman's lower back. "Nope. It's the truth."

Leena let out a dramatic sigh. "You're so annoying."

"Yes, my dear… I really am. So annoying that I'm gonna make you eat something."

"Wonderful," Leena covered her face with a hand and pulled the caretaker up off the floor. After two hours, Leena had successfully managed to eat three cheese sandwiches, four crackers, two apples and a candy bar. She also fell asleep almost as soon as her butt hit the couch cushion.

Claudia smiled and watch snuggled up to the woman hours later as she watched Myka and Helena dancing around the living room, Lillian on Helena's hip. The child was overcome with joy, her smile so wide, Claudia was half expecting her mouth to melt and slip off her face. She looked down at the innkeeper who's head was resting peacefully against her chest. She pecked Leena's forehead and continued to watch indulgently as the beats to an old Vampire Weekend track caused Lil's head to shake from side to side. "I know you want her to grow up all academic and into books and all that," Claudia began drolly, "but I tell you now that girl's got some crazy rhythm going on," she smirked, her fingers casually rubbing up and down Leena's arm.

She was a little surprised that her wife could sleep through the Indie cacophony but after the emotional afternoon they'd had and the fact that Leena's body was producing a cocktail of crazy hormones, she decided to let it go. She could spend hours pondering whether there was any truth to what Leena had ranted about, but the infant dancing and squealing with her mothers forced any of those thoughts to the back of her head. Instead, it made her that much more excited. She closed her eyes briefly and imagined teaching her child how to play their first guitar. Artie teaching them scales on the old piano in the corner of the room. She sighed dreamily and pulled Leena even closer, a hand discreetly moving down to settle against her tummy. Another squeal brought her back to the present and she smiled immediately as Lil's fluffy hair bobbed up and down as she rocked herself in Helena's arms, dancing to the music.

"Here, you gonna do it by yourself? Show Claudia what you can do?" Myka chuckled and took her daughter into her arms, then placed her on the floor and held onto her hands. "Helena, put White Sky on," she said with a giggle as Lil got up on wobbly feet and started to dance without the music even playing. The track changed and Claudia felt her face flare, unexpected tears filling her eyes when Lil shifted unsteadily on her feet and held on to her mother's hands for dear life. She tilted her little head to the side, as if taking in the music before her feet began to move and she bopped sporadically on chubby thighs, bouncing up and down. Becoming more and more confident, the infant was soon bouncing and hopping around the room with her mother's help, looking at Claudia for praise. Claudia wrinkled her nose, laughing as the baby flounced around, showing off her new skill. She felt Leena shift on top of her and sighed, cuddling the woman even closer.

Lillian Bering-Wells was the cheeriest baby she had ever seen in her life, and part of the reason was because she had a loving family. She cleared her throat quietly and brushed her lips against Leena's forehead again. Her child would be the same. She nodded. She was sure of it, and no matter how much Leena freaked out, she'd make sure her wife knew that too.


	5. Chapter 5

_Hey peeps. Sorry for the delay... uni is crazy right now but good thing is only two months and I'm free from education forever should I so choose. Hope you enjoy this chapter - it is a little angsty. Okay a lot. But those who have read my stuff know to trust me so hang in there. Please review if you can, they make my day... I literally end up bouncing around like a lunatic because of them._

oxoxoxo

8 weeks along. It was around three am when Leena awoke with a deep, paralyzing fear. It all clicked into place. Forcing down whimpers, she shook Claudia awake until the caretaker stirred and pulled her pillow away from her head as an attempt to wake herself up.. When Claudia finally blinked open her eyes and sat up asking what was wrong, Leena lost it and buried herself against her wife's chest, sobbing grievously. "Honey, honey… tell me what's wrong." Claudia noticed Leena's hands shaking and watched the woman's chest rise and fall rapidly. "Was it another bad dream?" Leena shook her head and as much as it pained Claudia, she discreetly checked the bedcovers and Leena's pajama pants for blood. "What's going on?"

There was silence bar the innkeeper's withering breaths until she spoke in a haunted tone. "We were so stupid."

"Huh?" was all Claudia could say, still half asleep and completely confused.

"Claudia," Leena sighed in defeat, tears sprinkling down her face. No wonder things didn't feel right. "How… wh," she took a shuddering breath and tried again. "My body clock…" At Claudia's blank look, she scrunched up her face and sobbed out, "The baby won't grow." She left the bed swiftly and pulled on some clothes before pacing round the room. She gripped her hair and let out a quiet wail. "This was all for nothing."

Claudia's stomach dropped and she swallowed the intense nauseous sensation down. She dashed out of bed and held Leena still, two strong hands holding her arms like a vice. "Don't panic. Breathe…"

Leena shook her head frantically, tears rolling down her face. "Doesn't feel right. Doesn't feel good, Claud. I… I dunno what to do."

"Frak, okay," Claudia took a deep breath to steady herself. "First thing we're gonna do is you're going to get back into bed," she ushered Leena over to the bed and sat her down. "Lie down. Deep breaths."

"Claudia, I'm so scared right now." Leena whispered hoarsely, her hand never leaving her abdomen as if she would cause the apocalypse if she did let go.

"Hey, hey…" Claudia held the woman's cheeks with warm palms and shook her head. "You can't panic, okay? Lie down, close your eyes… I'm gonna call Dr Vanessa."

"She's in Eureka," Leena whimpered, gritting her teeth as she focused passed the fear.

"And she will be here soon," Claudia hushed. "Shh, close your eyes."

"I'm so scared," the innkeeper's face scrunched up and she hugged the quilt cover to her chest, curling up into a ball.

"I will be right back, okay? I just need to go call her." Claudia whispered and grabbed her Farnsworth.

Out in the hall, Claudia sat down in the middle of the floor and watched as a very tired looking Dr. Calder answered, peering blearily at the screen. "Claudia?" Vanessa cleared her throat. "Everything okay?"

Claudia shook her head at the old woman. "We…we think there's something wrong with the baby."

Vanessa cleared her throat and sat up with haste. "Is she bleeding?" She asked, and began to get out of bed, packing a light holdall satchel.

"No." Claudia closed her eyes and shook her head, tears sprinkling down one cheek. "Vanessa…" She sighed. "We're not sure if Leena can carry."

"Why? She's perfectly capab-" Vanessa stopped still and pursed her lips. "Clock." she said simply.

Claudia nodded and covered her eyes, her shoulders shuddering. "Can you get here soon?"

"Leaving for a plane right now," Vanessa promised. "And Claudia?" The redhead looked down at the tears that had stained her grey vest black across her chest. Her eyes flicked back to the screen. "Calm down, we don't know for sure," the older woman soothed. "In the meantime, let her rest, see if you can get any information about how she's feeling, any pain," she said. "I'll be there as soon as I can. Keep me updated?"

Claudia nodded. It took every ounce of courage she had to stand up and re-enter the bedroom. Leena was still curled up on her side but she'd stopped crying. Instead, she stared at the baby monitor Farnsworth blueprints that Claudia had conjured up in the corner of the room. She just…stared.

"I've never carried to full term." Leena mumbled suddenly when Claudia's protective hand settled on her hip as she joined her on the bed.

"What?" Claudia's eyes snapped up to her wife's head. "Leena…what?"

Leena rolled onto her back and stared at the ceiling, one hand still cupping her lower belly. "1993. I got pregnant" Leena shrugged, as if it was the most natural thing to say to your wife of five years in the world. "I miscarried at 12 weeks."

Claudia's tongue tied and though she attempted to speak, nothing came out for a good while. "Wha… Who-"

"Don't." Leena put her hand up and shook her head. "Don't you dare," she sniffed. "Don't you dare ask me that right now."

_Then don't bring it up._ Claudia mentally snapped. She closed her eyes, took a deep, settling breath and blindly took hold of Leena's hand. "Okay," she mumbled. "I'm sorry." She blinked and watched closely as Leena's scrunched her eyes closed and she began to cry into her hand. "Oh shit, honey come here." She opened her arms and even though Leena was lying down, she practically fell into Claudia's arms, hugging her as tightly as she could. "Shhh, it'll be okay," she whispered.

"Please don't say that," Leena shook her head, "Please don't say that just yet or I'll believe you." Claudia didn't know how to answer that, so instead, she rubbed Leena's back and lay with her for an hour and a half as she contemplated Leena losing a child. It sent shivers down her spine and though the initial jealousy struck her hard, now she just felt an overwhelming amount of grief. Leena had fallen asleep again in her arms. She could hear Artie in the next room, snoring his head off. He was actually quite enjoying living at the inn, although Myka had often found him sleepwalking when she got up in the night to feed Lillian. Claudia lay there staring at the ceiling, waiting for a sign, for the phone to ring. For someone to just tell her it'll be okay. Placing a hand on Leena's tummy, she closed her eyes and stroked the soft downy covered skin with her thumb gently. "Please," she merely whispered. "Just…" She felt her throat close. "Just, please…"

Waking up with a start, Claudia looked down to find herself in the same position she'd been in before; back against the wall, one hand protectively lying across Leena's belly and her wife half on top of her. She looked around at the source of the noise and grabbed her Farnsworth, flicking it open hastily. "Hi."

"Sorry I took a while," Vanessa replied. "Pete's just let me in."

"You're here?" Claudia wiped her eyes and blinked a few times. She watched the older woman nodded and she stretched. "We'll be right there." she said and hung up. "Leena? We have to go to the Warehouse," Claudia whispered, loud enough to stir the woman awake.

"Is she here?" was Leena's immediate reply, which obviously meant the innkeeper wasn't sleeping as deeply as Claudia had thought she had been.

"Yeah, time to go." She said, and eased Leena up until the woman was able to put some warmer clothes on.

Claudia opened the door to the Warehouse twenty minutes later and pulled Leena forward. The innkeeper clutched Claudia's hand so firmly, the redhead was pretty sure she'd either obtained a small break or at least a sprain.

"Hi," Vanessa's voice soothed the women instantly as they entered the Warehouse's hospital wing. "How're you doing?"

Leena shook her head, biting her lip to stop it from shaking. "I just… I need to know."

"Alright," Vanessa rubbed her back and guided her over to the chair that stood in the middle of the room. The Warehouse medical wing was a strange place, much different from every other part of the huge storage system. It was relatively new, built in the late 80s and though it still contained several strange steampunky gadgets scattered around the room which, of course, Claudia was forever fascinated by, it stood out like a sore thumb. When Leena was settled in the chair, Vanessa wordlessly started up the ultrasound machine. "Apart from with Myka, I don't think I've done an ultrasound on a pregnancy with this machine before. It's usually worms, or…" she froze. "Funny, huh?"

Her good humor was lost on both women and she looked up as Pete snuck in. "Can I…uhh, can I be here? Or do you want me to leave?," he asked gently, looking at the tearstained faces of his friends.

Leena sniffed and wiped her face with her hand before she waved him over and he sat down next to the chair. She sighed and watched closely as Vanessa smeared a little gel over her abdomen. "Feeling bloaty?" Leena looked down at herself and nodded, letting out a nervous laugh. "Quite a tum there," Vanessa smiled and turned the Doppler machine up. "Okay, ready?" Leena gripped Claudia's hand hard as she prepared herself and nodded. Gliding the transducer over the woman's skin, the echoing sound filled the room and each person waited anxiously. Nothing. Just the sound of Leena's belly coming into contact with the probe. "Keep calm, you're still very early… it might be too soon" Vanessa reminded gently, her hand moving further down until she reached just above the pubic bone. Still nothing. Leena sighed and wriggled her hand free from Claudia's, covering her eyes as tears trickled again. They'd try again, right? Leena held down a sob. She didn't think she could do this again and if she was quite honest, she was about to lose it. Big time. Still nothing. It really was all for nothing. Before her chest was able to constrict from the crippling grief she had started to feel, there it was. A tiny, speedy little heartbeat. "Hear that?" Vanessa smiled, a little shocked that there were tears in her own eyes. She listened a while longer and took in their reactions. "Your baby is very much alive and well." she said with a small crack in her voice.

"But… how?" Leena let out a wondrous smile. "I just… I was so sure."

Vanessa shrugged and listened intently at the beats. "You don't grow any older, or grow at all for that matter, but your baby is a different human being," she smiled. "Just as long as you keep eating properly, and taking the right supplements, I don't think we'll have a problem at all. Your hormone levels are fine, or at least they were…and he or she is just getting all the nutrients it can get to… well, to create its own clock." She looked around the room, then dipped her head to look Leena squarely in the eye. It was as if they were having a silent conversation, until Leena nodded slowly. "Now," Vanessa said cautiously, "What we need is for you not to worry, okay?"

"Hard…" Leena muttered.

Vanessa smiled and turned on a few buttons at the machine next to her. "Understandable. Is it why you never tried again?" Leena looked at her fingers and nodded silently. Claudia was ready to burst into tears. Instead, she held Leena's hand tightly. Vanessa sighed in understanding. "Then let me put your mind at rest. Second pregnancies are usually extremely successful. And…" She drew the transducer of the ultrasound over Leena's abdomen, down passed the ovaries until… "There we go. Say hi," she grinned at the two women and Pete who had scooted over and was looking dumbly at the screen. He was still trying to understand the whole second pregnancies thing when he saw it.

"That's…" Claudia gulped. She peered at the screen and pointed with a shaky finger. She had done that. Or at least helped with that… in a very smexy way. That tiny little child was her doing. She swallowed thickly. "My…"

"Your baby," Vanessa smiled widely. "Yes, Claudia," she said with feigned priggishness. Claudia scoffed and rolled her eyes, tears sneaking out passed her nose.

"Oh god that is kinda adorable," she whispered softly.

Pete chuckled. "It's a blob."

"See?" Claudia laughed, looking at her wife who was still trying to take in the immense relief that she felt. "It is a blob, I was right," she smiled down at Leena who was sniffling quietly.

"Hey, look at its little ticker going!" Pete exclaimed, ruffling Claudia's hair before she swiped at him with her arms to stop.

She did look at the screen though and shook her head in wonder. "That's its heart?"

She turned to Vanessa who smiled as she continued to take down the stats of what seemed to be a very healthy early pregnancy. She nodded. "That is the heart… beating very well."

"Can I have a picture?" Leena asked, holding her lip tightly with her fingers as an attempt to stop herself from becoming hysterical.

"Printed it already," Vanessa smiled and handed over the sonogram. "If you get worried about anything, you'll let me know?"

Both women nodded with confidence. The innkeeper let out yet another sigh of relief and looked Claudia in the eye. She wordlessly pulled the woman over, cupping her chin delicately before she pressed her lips to her wife's. She pulled back, grinned and kissed her again. Claudia smiled into the kiss and rubbed her thumb softly against the innkeeper's cheek. "You okay?" she whispered when she separated from her wife, peering into the hazel eyes that seemed kind of green in the clinical light.

Leena nodded, blowing out a nervous breath. "Yeah… Yeah I'm good," she looked down at the sonogram and traced the baby's silhouette with a finger. "Oh wow…" she looked at the sonogram again and flopped back against the chair, closing her eyes as another wave of relief passed through her. She'd never felt anything like this in her life.

"You are so tired," Claudia laughed, shaking her head as she saw the innkeeper's eyes drooping as she lay back in the chair. She watched as Vanessa got up to take off her gloves and wash her hands, grinning from ear to ear when the doctor placed a proud hand on her shoulder.. "Come on, time for bed." She chirped, rubbing at Leena's thigh.

Leena yawned and nodded, happily letting the redhead pull her up. "Sorry about the hassle." she said sincerely to the doctor who stood watching admirably with a hand on her hip. Claudia was so much like a daughter to her, she had to keep reminding herself that they weren't actually related.

"Oh not at all," Vanessa placed a hand on her shoulder and squeezed it. "Anytime you have any little problems, you come to me, okay?" Leena nodded and gave a shy smile, her eyes never leaving the sonogram in her hand.

"Can we put this on the fridge?" Leena asked as they neared the umbilicus.

Pete laughed. "You're kidding me, right? It's totally the first thing Claudia had on her mind when you guys get home."

"Dead man," the caretaker growled.

"Heh," he shrugged and waved them off. "You going with them, Doc?"

"I think I might," Vanessa smiled. "I can't say no to a warm bed."

Pete snorted. "I bet he's like a cute little teddy bear." Each woman turned to Pete with quirked eyebrows.

"Seriously?" Leena rolled her eyes, still clutching the sonogram in her hand. Claudia's arm wrapped around her wife's back.

"Night, Pete." Claudia sighed, holding in a yawn.

"Night," he chuckled.

The younger woman turned suddenly and put her finger in the air, remembering something. "What time's Danny flying in?"

"Seven." He grinned widely. "You still okay to… you know," Pete's arm flailed around to signify the warehouse.

Claudia's eyes darted to Leena who shifted uncomfortably, looking desperate to get home. "Sure," she nodded. "Sure."

Claudia had to practically drag Leena up the stairs after they'd clipped the sonogram onto the fridge. "We're still having a baby," Claudia smiled, wrapping her arms around Leena's waist.

"We are," Leena's voice bubbled with excitement. "Ohhh my god." She smiled and closed her eyes when kisses were pressed to her neck. "Thanks for not freaking out."

"Oh I freaked out." Claudia smirked. "I even prayed."

"You didn't…" Leena spluttered.

The caretaker sighed and nodded. "I did. I was freaking out, and I prayed when you were asleep."

Leena frowned. "To who?"

Claudia shifted on her feet and shrugged. "The dudes who make the artifacts? It's not all science… I know that." She huffed reluctantly. Leena's breath hitched and she sunk back into her wife's arms, letting out a small nod. "This kinda just went from the worst day of my life to the best, you know that?" She turned Leena around and took a deep breath when the innkeeper hugged her tight. She smiled at the little yawn that sounded in her ear. "Oh you are such a sleepyhead," she grinned.

Leena let the woman lead the way to the bedroom but froze when they got to their bed. "You really have to go?"

Claudia sighed. "Sweetie, it's the same as if we got a ping and I was out on the field."

Leena huffed and pulled off her clothes, looking down at the small podge of her belly with a grin. She lost it when she remembered their discussion. "Still… I don't like it."

"Then come with me, to the Warehouse. Come stay with me and leave to go to the inn in the morning."

"Okay," Leena nodded happily and slipped into bed.

"Wh… really? You really wanna stay in the Warehouse with me?"

"Not really… but I don't wanna sleep on my own, so I guess we gotta meet halfway, huh?" She rolled over and smiled when Claudia frantically snuggled up close behind her as she tried to understand.

"You are something else," Claudia grinned and kissed the smooth back under her lips. "Really? You're coming to the Warehouse with me."

"Until little Daniel leaves. But I'll be heading over to the B&B in the mornings. No stalling."

Claudia chortled and mouthed at the woman's back, lightly digging her teeth into the skin. "Can we have sex there?"

"On Pete's bed? Are you kidding?" Leena's eyes were closed and though her voice was a little slower, her tone was still incredulous.

"We can change the sheets," Claudia wrinkled her nose. " Or fuck on the floor. Please… It'll be sexy."

"Sex is supposed to be sexy. It's why it's called sex." Leena hummed when a possessive hand grasped her breast. "Ahhh, ahh… oww," she winced suddenly. "Claud… sensitive."

"Sorry," Claudia chuckled sheepishly. "I forgot." She nuzzled her nose against the nape of Leena's neck. "Come on… what do you say?"

"Okay, yes I will have sex with you in the Warehouse if it means you'll let me go back to sleep."

Claudia fistpumped discreetly. "You just made a woman very happy."

"Okay," the innkeeper tugged the covers with finality, "Goodnight." she smirked. "Kinky bitch." She mumbled, grinning at the cackle sounding in her ear as Claudia snuggled even closer.

"Night," Claudia let out a final sigh before she too closed her eyes, trying to get a few more hours in until breakfast. She knew Leena would head out as soon as she woke up to buy supplies for Pete's son. Trix were his favorite… then, Apple Jacks. Her eyes snapped open and she stopped the stroking assault she had on Leena's belly. She was turning into her wife. Either that, or she was becoming some crazy hospitable old lady. _Oh shit_… She rolled onto her back and placed both hands over her chest. She really was ready to be a parent. She was ready to do school runs, and help her child with his or her homework, and teach them about cool history lessons she'd learnt whilst working at the Warehouse. What's more… she was looking forward to it. If she was telling the truth, she knew it would be a girl. She joked around to Leena saying the opposite but after months of using the prayer sheet from Min's temple and finding her voice exactly the same, zero increase in body or facial hair, she was pretty sure whatever the kid was made from was all the x's. She closed her eyes. Leena shifted in her sleep, sensing the change in temperature as Claudia moved away from her. Turning, she sought her out and wrapped one arm around the redhead's waist, pinning her down. "You really need to stop playing this snuggle game," Claudia whispered, pecking her wife on the forehead. She knew they needed to talk... about the miscarriage, about what happened... who happened, even. She wouldn't push it though - maybe gentle reminders but if Leena was uncomfortable, maybe the best thing to do was to leave it. All in due time. Right? She sighed in defeat, too tired to think about it and closed her eyes once more, finally able to rest and catch up on the sleep she'd missed.


	6. Chapter 6

Hello folks! Sorry about the huge hiatus... I am finally free! Watch this space for very frequent chapters from now on. Also apologies for the angst in this chapter and a lot of questions I'm sure you'll be asking. All will be revealed.

oxoxoxoxoxoxo

Claudia woke up the next day to an empty bed. What made up for this was the amazing smell of newly baked bread. She practically floated out of the bedroom, slipping on some jeans and a t-shirt, before heading downstairs to greet her wife. Leena was sat at the table, surprisingly, sipping a cup of tea. She only looked up when Claudia sat down next to her, a strange, inquisitive look on her face. "How come you let me sleep in?"

Leena shrugged and showed a smile, "Thought you needed it."

Claudia pondered that and nodded slowly. _What she needed was her morning make-out session._ She stood up and went to the fridge to pour herself a glass of orange juice, smiling instinctively at the sonogram clipped by a question mark magnet. Sitting down again, she tapped her fingers against the table. "You want me to come shopping with you this morning?"

Leena looked up from the magazine she was reading and narrowed her eyes. "What's the catch?" She smirked.

Claudia, baffled, held up her hands and shook her head. "No catch… just wanted to see if you wanted some company."

The innkeeper's eyes softened and she caught Claudia's hand. "Okay… That'll be nice."

Claudia blinked. "Okay," she nodded. "So we're really doing this. You moving to the Warehouse with me while Danny's over."

"I'm really doing this." Leena smiled. "But bedtime only, you know Artie doesn't like pregnant women around the Warehouse, it makes him all jittery." At that, Claudia let out a huge smile and stood up, leaning over the wide dining table to deliver a kiss to the woman's lips.

Leena grinned. "C'mere," she cooed and pulled her wife by the hand until the Caretaker was sat in her lap. "Hi."

"Hi there," Claudia grinned back and kissed her again._ Finally._ The sigh of relief fluttered across Leena's lips before the other woman pulled her even closer and the tiny grazes of their tongues meeting spurred them on.

A clear of the throat landed Claudia on the kitchen floor. She looked up at the old man who was standing at the corner of the kitchen with his eyebrows quirked. Artie took a firmer hold of his walking stick and shuffled towards the table. "Well I heard the good news." He smiled when Claudia eventually got up to make him some coffee. He turned and looked at Leena, placing a hand on her forearm. "Are you okay?"

Claudia grit her teeth, her hands shaking as she put two teaspoons of sugar in the mug.

Leena cleared her throat and nodded. "I am now," she rubbed her nose. "Thanks though…"

He rubbed her wrist and nodded, then helped himself to a slice of the still warm bread on the table. Sounds of wailing filtered through the air as Lillian told the world that she wasn't enjoying her morning very much.

"Morning," Vanessa chirped, entering the vicinity as Leena began to move some of the food from the fridge onto a tray to bring to the dining room. "Feeling better?"

"Much," Leena smiled. "A little queasy." Vanessa grinned back and placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. "I'm afraid I'm gonna have to go," she said, clipping her phone to her belt. "There's been an outbreak of what they think is E. coli in Madison but they don't know where it's coming from." She frowned and shook her head. "Kinda strange… you might even see me later," she grinned and bent down to give Artie a peck on the lips. "Don't let Danny tire you out," she chuckled and petted his shoulder.

"You ever gonna retire?" Claudia smirked and took a slurp of her coffee.

Vanessa snorted and gave a shrug. "Maybe… been thinking about it." she shared a shy smile with Artie and shrugged her bag over her shoulder. "See you soon." She turned to Leena and looked her in the eye. "And you… you tell me if anything else comes up, okay? And I'll be on the next flight over." She pulled the woman close for a hug.

"I will," Leena nodded. Suddenly she looked very focused on something, then looked up and excused herself to go and be sick.

Claudia sighed and stirred her coffee, only looking up when she felt eyes on her. She frowned. "What?"

Artie quirked his eyebrow. "Oh! Oh… right, right." Claudia pushed herself up off the chair. "My cue to be a good wife, right…" She rolled her eyes and disappeared off towards the downstairs bathroom.

After Leena's stomach had settled, the couple decided to go shopping whilst Myka left Helena with Lil to help Pete move his things to one of the spare rooms in the B&B. The B&B itself contained seven bedrooms. Previously, Daniel's visit would have caused more hassle but now, the lay-out of bedrooms would pretty much remain untouched.

Leena and Claudia shared the very front bedroom. Admittedly, it was the largest room and had a great view of the Badlands, especially in the morning. Above this, was the loft which as the group decided, would be converted into a loft for one of the children. The room next to theirs, was Helena and Myka's spacious bedroom. Next door was the nursery, where Daniel would be sleeping along with Lillian, and opposite that was Artie's room. Over the years, the B&B had changed from being an inn full of friends, to a family house.

Leena sighed, drumming her fingers against the dashboard, distractedly looking at her home and how much it had changed. Claudia jumped in the car and slammed the door with a grin, "Okay, ready!" she said brightly.

"Finally," Leena smirked, but a hint of disappointment was laced in her tone. She cleared her throat and started the car.

Claudia rolled her eyes, "Geeze, lighten up!" She frowned. "What's wrong with you?"

"Nothing is _wrong_ with me." Leena muttered. "I… I dunno," she sighed. "I'm just irritable I guess."

Watching as her wife drove, Claudia slowly reached up and placed a hand on Leena's shoulder. "Tell you what, let's stop for coffee, just chill…okay? Before all the shopping."

Leena swallowed. "Okay." She nodded and rubbed her nose with a fist. "Okay, let's go for coffee." She let out a gentle smile, keeping her eyes on the road.

Coffee, it seems, didn't help. Leena was getting beyond snappy as they made their way around the supermarket, and Claudia had quite frankly had enough. _Keep it in. Keep it in_. "Oh hey, we're running out of milk, want me to jog over?"

"Sure, whatever…" The innkeeper muttered and threw some Cheetos into the cart.

"Okay!" Claudia gave a bitter wrinkle of the nose and held her hands up in defeat, shaking her head. "Fuck this… I'm outta here."

"What?" Leena frowned. "Claud-"

"Nope," Claudia shook her head again, harder this time. "I'm through with you treating me like shit today."

"Claudia-"

"I'm through!" Claudia stressed again and sniffed. "See you whenever." She turned and simply walked off. Unfortunately, she hadn't thought this bit through. She ended up getting a cab from Rapid City to Univille which cost her a small fortune and then found herself wandering along the streets, scuffing her feet angrily across the paving stones. Something was on Leena's mind and despite asking, the woman remained closeted and highly-strung.

She grumbled and entered the ice-cream parlor to calm herself down, getting an extra scoop because she deserved it, right? Sure, Leena's body was pumping a ridiculous amount of hormones in her body, and sure, she couldn't help how she felt at times… But Claudia was trying. So hard. And trying, being the good, sympathetic wife she was being just wasn't working. She was getting trodden on. Suddenly realizing that she was muttering herself while attacking the bowl of rum fudge ice cream with her spoon, she quietened down and tried to think about the next strategy. She needed to seriously talk to Leena about their sudden fights and try and find out what it was that her wife was keeping from her. The baby was fine, Vanessa had proved that. Leena was healthy, or at least that's what the doctor had said…so what was it? What was so hard for her to say? Before she knew it, tears of frustration rolled down her cheeks and dripped into the sweet concoction. She sighed and brushed more away, then gulped down another spoonful of her ice-cream.

Leena, having finished shopping, made her way back to Univille with a fixed frown on her face. Something needed to be sorted out and fast. After packing all the shopping away, she decided to leave again and go for another drive. Finding her favorite lake off the 240, she sighed, unravelled her cardigan and sat down on the sand with her head in her hands. She wished she could feel the baby move… to make this all real. To make it look like they weren't fighting for nothing, that these hormones were actually for something because frankly right now, she was feeling completely cruddy. She looked at the time. 2pm. She really should have been back at the B&B but she'd do anything to avoid Claudia right now. She sighed again and looked up at the calming water. The ripples were moving slowly, strange but also comforting for this particular lake.

"I thought you'd be here," came the gruff voice. It made Leena jump and as she turned, she immediately rolled her eyes.

"She told you to come, didn't she?" Leena sighed at an old man who gripped a walking stick in his left hand. He was roughly in his sixties, had a short, white sprinkled beard making a sharp contrast against his dark skin. He let out a smile and lowered himself down slowly to sit on the sand with a light-hearted groan.

"She's concerned about you." He said and turned to look at the woman, only younger by two decades. Her face told a different story, mind. "Did you and Claudia have another fight?"

Leena huffed and turned her head away from him, looking at the water. "Yes." Her voice broke and she sniffed away a tear. "I don't know what to do, Tim. I just…" She huffed, "I don't know what to do," she murmured sadly now sat once more with her head in her hands.

He set a calloused, wrinkled hand on her shoulder and pulled her close. Timothy was a wise man, experience lined by deep dents on his face. He was comforting and despite their past, Leena cuddled close and let out her tears of frustration. "Shhh, hey," he hushed, and rubbed her back slowly. "Oh sugar, you're gonna be okay." He kissed the top of her head. "You're gonna be okay." He let her cry for a while before a giggle was forced out of him. "Darlin' you're acting like you don't wanna have a baby."

At that she quickly sat up and wiped her tears. "No, no… I do." She nodded her head hastily. "I do, it's what I want. I want it so bad." She said, her eyes almost pleading. "I need it so bad."

He smiled and wiped the tears away from her cheeks. "You are going to have this baby, and bring your child up to be one helluva loving, kind and generous kid, okay?" His hands shook slightly from age but he held her chin steadily, watching her eyes darting away from his face.

Her lips quivered and she looked down to fiddle with her hands. "I'm scared," she whispered sadly.

"I know, precious." Tim sighed. "I know…" He squeezed her arm and went quiet, looking out at the water. His silence was broken by a disturbed thought. "Do you ever think about it? Us?"

Leena's eyes closed in pain and she nodded slowly. "All the time," her voice cracked and her shoulders shook. His arm left her shoulder and he distanced himself.

"It was a long time ago," he said hoarsely. She nodded. "So you know what? I don't want you to be scared… because what happened…" he heard the woman's breath hitch and swallowed thickly. "Was not our fault, okay? It just wasn't time." He sighed heavily. "It wasn't the right time."

"It still feels like a punishment." Leena shrugged vacantly. "I was pregnant, I wasn't supposed to be… nature punished me."

"No," the old man shook his head and took her hand. "No, it was not. It was a learning curve, and you know what, honey?" He paused and closed his eyes. "You need to tell Claudia everything."

Leena stood up suddenly and began to pace, scuffing her feet against the sand. "And tell her what?"

"The truth." Timothy said gently. He gripped his walking stick, rolling it around his aged palms. "Telling her is the only way to move forward."

Leena sniffled and shook her head, placing a hand on her abdomen as she thought about her wife's child, comfy and warm inside her. Her face wrinkled as she got closer to completely losing it. "And she's going to react to that, how? How is she going to…" She found it hard to breathe and paced around the shore, reaching up to grip her hair. "She's going to leave me."

Tim sighed and shook his head, sympathetic eyes peering at her with unconditional care. "She loves you. She is about to become a mother… I am pretty sure that she won't leave you." Leena's pacing stopped and she looked at her old boyfriend, staring him in the face. She had been so young. Well, she was 26, but she was naïve and immature. Tim had been older, mature… He was kind and thoughtful. Endearing. And there was so much history between them. He had gotten older, she had stayed the same. She sniffed and tried to stop her lip from quivering.

"I'm scared."

"I know," Tim stood up slowly, pulling himself up with the walking stick. "But sweetie, you need to tell her, because she knows something is going on with you and I don't think she thinks it's just hormones."

"Mrs. Frederic tell you that too?" Leena mumbled, kicking a rock sullenly.

"Maybe." Tim smiled and caught the woman's hand. "Go… now. Tell her the truth."

She felt like she was about to burst into tears again and clutched him in a tight hug. "Don't be a stranger, okay?"

"I'll try," he smiled and pecked the top of her head. "Go on… I hate people being angry at each other." He sighed and watched the innkeeper wave goodbye then toddle off before he did the same.

When Leena got home, she felt waves of guilt attack her gut and sat down on the couch with a heavy flop. What she didn't expect was Claudia to wander into the room, whistling to herself half naked in a towel. "Oh." Leena squeaked and her eyes widened. "I uhh… I thought… I didn't-"

Claudia held up a hand to stop her and shook her head. "You wanna take this upstairs?"

Her wife's tone was cold and quite monotonous. Leena rubbed her eyes and nodded, before heading up the stairs. Claudia followed where she began to get changed when they were in their bedroom, scrubbing at her hair to dry it. "You wanna explain? What's with the fucking bitchiness?"

Leena sat in the middle of the bed and crossed her legs. She wouldn't cry. Not again… She was not allowed to cry. "I…" she looked down at herself and felt her throat become tight. "Claud, I have a lot of stuff to tell you, okay?" her voice went a little higher as she tried not to let her emotions run wild. "And it's gonna be hard for me to tell you some of it. But I want you to know that I didn't tell you because I didn't think you would understand, and a lot of it is so painful that I can't even… even think about…"

"Hey," Claudia's brow furrowed as she watched her wife get more and more distressed. "Don't take it out on yourself okay? We want the little nugget nice and safe…" She frowned and sat down, taking hold of Leena's hand. "Whatever it is you've got to tell me, I'm gonna listen, okay?" Claudia said gently. She was freaked, she wasn't going to lie. Even her hands had begun to shake and if she was honest, she partly knew what this as about.

"I…was 26." Leena mumbled.

"When… you lost the baby?" Claudia said slowly. A sad nod was her answer.

"Mrs. Frederic had pretty much kept me on my own most of the time, and I was running the inn, you know?"

"Okay," Claudia soothed, more than a little confused. That's when Leena went silent. She seemed as if she'd never speak again until a sudden bout of confidence caught the young caretaker off guard.

"I had an affair with a man called Tim. He was quite a bit older than me… in his forties." She smiled. "He was so handsome and mysterious and I met him strolling through Univille this one time…" she blinked a few tears from her eyes. "Without a care in the world… And he stole my heart there and then."

Claudia grit her teeth. She tried not to be jealous… she really did, but each time she heard about one of her wife's exes, she got a little territorial. Nevertheless, she squeezed Leena's hand hard and gave a thin-lipped smile. "Claudia… he was her son. He _is_ her son."

"Whose?" Claudia was now completely confused.

The secret came out as a hoarse whisper, thirty years of repressed feelings causing Leena to let out a sob. "Mrs. Frederic's."

Claudia frowned as it sunk in and left the bed swiftly grabbing her wet hair in shock. "No…" She sucked in a breath and shook her head, letting out a scoff of disbelief. The crying woman on the bed made things so unfunny it gave her a headache. "But… but she's your mother. She adopted you."

"She did." Leena spluttered. "But she dissolved it in 1992, two months after she found out about us." Claudia paced around the room and got her stuff ready. "Claudia… Claud, please-"

"Oh now you beg? You just told me your brother got you pregnant thirty years ago and after…" she took a heaving breath. "After ten years of us being together? You tell me now. When you're carrying my child. Fuck, Leena…" She got a bag together, still shaking her head in disgust.

"He wasn't my brother!" Leena screeched. "He was a guy I met who happened to be my adoptive mother's son. She hadn't told me about him, she brought me up as a single child, he was twenty years older than me! How was I supposed to know, Claud? Huh? How?"

Claudia sniffed and stopped packing for a second. "I dunno… maybe I'm being completely irrational, but when my wife suddenly tells me she used to do her brother by_ law_, I think I'm allowed to be a little squicked." Leena stayed silent. She merely hung her head low and tried not to think. Maybe it wasn't worth it. Maybe, if Claudia couldn't understand something like this, maybe they shouldn't be parents together anyway. "Going to the Warehouse now." Claudia exhaled. "You stay here, I dunno if I wanna see you for a while. Text me if Danny gets here safe." And with that final bitter tone, she left the room and the B&B soon after.

TBC.


	7. Chapter 7

Hey readers, told you I'd have this one uploaded quickly! This is one of the longest chapters so hope you enjoy. Another big** trigger warning**: This deals with graphic depictions of miscarriage. This chapter is rated **M** for sexual situations, emotional distress and adult themes.

A little side note_: Dealing with the story of Leena's miscarriage has helped me deal with my own personal issues in the last year, so it is not in vain. I see Leena as a character with a hell of a lot of history and heartbreak and I hope this story has shown that. Also, in relation to the review I received about the theme of incest, I respect it - but in this case I hope you agree after reading this chapter that this is a very particular case. Putting out a warning would have been a major spoiler and would have, in a sense, over-exaggerated the situation as both Tim and Leena were not related by blood, did not know the other existed and the siblingship was dissolved along with the adoption just after they began to date._

oxoxoxoxoxo

At five o'clock later that day, Leena had been trying to forget about the crumbling relationship with her wife and had submerged herself in a good book. Stupidly, she decided to re-read The Help. It had been about ten years since she'd read it and now she had a tissue in one hand, a chocolate bar in the other and despite realizing she was acting out the biggest woman stereotype of mankind, she couldn't help herself. The door clicked and Myka and Helena trudged into the house, soaked to the bone. Interestingly though, Lil who had just come back from her new day care was perfectly fine and pretty much dry.

Leena wiped her eyes with a thumb and looked up. Myka, who had originally been rather angry, softened immediately and crouched down. "You okay?" Leena's face scrunched up and she shook her head, wiping her cheeks with her palm. "You wanna talk?" Leena's head shook again.

"Oh sweetie," Myka took off her raincoat and hung it up before sitting down. She pulled Leena close. "It'll be okay… you two will so sort this out, whatever it is." She gave her a tiny shake. "Okay?"

Leena blinked. "How…h-"

"You think the Warehouse rained on us…what, just because?" Myka smiled. "Innkeeper and the Caretaker at each other's throats… we knew what'd happened." She paused. "Well, kinda." Leena sniffled at the kindness and found herself crying in her friend's arms. "Hey… you know what she's like. She's all bark and no bite…" Myka frowned at herself. "Okay, she's all bite and a bit nibble."

Leena broke away and fanned at her face to stop the tears. "Can I talk to you guys about a few things?"

"Of course," Myka soothed her. "Always, you know that... Hey, you wanna hold a baby? She's like a stress ball…just don't squeeze her too hard."

Leena gave a sniffling giggle and nodded, waving Lil over. The baby was plopped into her lap and strangely, she immediately curled up and lay in Leena's chest, head pressed against her breastbone. "Okay… Didn't expect this to work this quickly," Leena inhaled back a few tears and smiled, rubbing Lil's back, mainly for her own comfort. Slowly, she managed to tell Myka and Helena everything. Helena's face hadn't changed, Myka's eyebrows had raised but they both stayed silent until they were able to speak.

Suddenly, Helena blinked and after taking everything in, nodded to herself. "It has taken me approximately thirty seconds to digest this… and I have to say if Claudia doesn't come round, I'll never understand her." She sat herself down next to the innkeeper and her hand fit neatly in the other woman's palm. "We have your back." Leena sniffed and nodded, looking down at Lil who was still nestled against her chest.

Myka got up and paced slightly. "So…" she breathed. "Wait, so Mrs. Frederic dissolved the adoption."

Leena hummed the affirmative as she swallowed heavily. "It was for our protection. She didn't want to get in the way of mine and Tim's relationship." She looked down at her hands. "She changed it so that she was… still is, my legal guardian. She promised me… she would protect me."

"And Tim?" Helena asked gently, smiling at the fact that Leena's slow rubbing to Lil's back was sending her daughter to sleep.

Leena shrugged. "He left after I lost the baby. I broke it off, I… He was heartbroken." She became distraught. "It's happening again, isn't it?"

"No," Myka said adamantly and rushed to sit down next to the woman. "No, it's not. Because we are here for you, okay? And I don't think anybody was at the time, were they?" She saw the minute shake of the head. "Good, see? Claudia is not going to leave you and we're not going to let her."

Leena closed her eyes and kissed the top of Lil's head. "Okay…" she nodded, feeling a little more comfortable. "Hopefully Daniel coming to stay will keep my mind off it."

Myka patted her shoulder. "Is Claud coming to say hi?" A quirk of the eyebrow was her only answer. "Oh…."

Leena snorted. "She told me to text her when he arrived."

"Then leave her be," Myka shrugged bitterly. "If she wants to be a child, let her."

Leena looked down to see Lil fast asleep, a fist in her mouth. "I lied to her for 10 years, I lied to all of you. It's okay for her to be annoyed with me."

Helena sighed. "Well," she said and stood up, crossing her arms. "Today is for little Daniel and his welcome home party." She grabbed hold of Leena's book and the empty candy wrappers. "Agreed?"

Leena smirked. "Agreed." She stood up slowly, still cradling the slumbering infant in her arms. A wide smile emerged on her face as she swayed her hips lightly.

Myka caught the infectious grin. "You're excited."

"I am," Leena grinned. "I have to keep reminding myself that in a few months..." She left it open ended, knowing if she carried on she'd get too animated and wake Lillian up.

Myka laughed softly and followed Leena as the innkeeper lay Lil down in her crib. They gathered together all of the little treats for the party. Leena decided, after a few hours, that even without Claudia, she was having a good time watching Lil play with balloons and squeal at the sounds they made. Artie joined them soon after, and though he had questions for Leena about why it had suddenly started to hail in the fertility aisle, this day was for Danny.

When Pete's voice was heard outside the B&B, the excitement in the building was palpable, each woman excited to see the young boy. Artie stood from a distance and watched the ladies clucking like hens, making sure the candy was prepared on the table properly. Pete opened the door to find three smiling buffoons holding a welcome home banner and a grinning baby, nestled against Helena's hip batting a teething ring. Daniel's mousey face lit up and he turned to his father with a chortle. "Welcome home, buddy." Pete grinned and lowered the boy to the ground. Daniel immediately ran into Leena's arms, having spent more time with her and shyly looked up over the almost unnoticeable slope of her belly.

"Hey, sweetie." She smiled and ruffled his hair. "You okay?"

He nodded and hugged her again before timidly making his way around the small group and greeting them. The six year old looked around suddenly and frowned. "Daddy?"

"Yeah?" Pete had begun to start putting away some of Daniel's toys in a box in the corner of the room especially for him.

"Where's Aunt Claud?" He asked, a troubled look flashing across his face.

Myka shared a glance with the man and began cautiously. "Claudia's at work, honey. She's working real hard but she'll come and see you when she's finished." He continued to frown but nodded slowly. "Okay?"

His darkening hair flipped around his eyes and he looked up, shaking it away. "Okay," he let out a gradual smile and looked at Lil who was on the floor destroying a tiny baby-sized piece of cake with her fingers. "Can I hold her?"

"Sure you can," Myka grinned and grabbed a baby wipe, cleaning her daughter's hands (much to Lillian's chagrin) and watched as Daniel excitedly seated himself on the couch next to Artie. The old man wrapped a protective arm around the boy and smiled vacantly when Lil was plopped in the six year old's lap.

"She's heavier than last time," he huffed looking down as Lil squirmed irritably. A look of terror crossed his face and he looked up, fearing he was about to be told off.

"Hey, it's quite alright," Helena soothed and lifted the sobbing baby before swivelling her round so she faced him. "She just wants to see you."

Immediately, the infant stopped crying and gave the boy a gummy smile, holding her slightly sticky hands up.

"Hello," Daniel giggled, pressing his fingers against Lil's. "She's funny," he smirked.

"She's a terror," Myka chuckled, before letting out a sigh as Helena got back up from kneeling on the floor, and slipped her arms around her wife before pulling her close. Helena pecked the back of her neck where she could reach and smiled. "She gets it from her mother." Myka said coyly and felt her belly getting pinched.

Pete had this strange look on his face, a mixture of pride and nervous energy manifesting itself as a goofy grin. Myka's eyes squinted. "Spill, Lattimer."

Leena chuckled. "Glad I wasn't the only one noticing something. Something happened at the airport." She watched the turbulent dark blues glimmer across his chest and mix with fiery auburn.

Pete cleared his throat and grabbed a piece of cake before chomping down a large mouthful. "Daniel's carer? The one who brought him on the flight, told me Daniel has to stay for ten months." He mumbled.

"Ten months!" Each adult squawked, gasping and spluttering in unison.

He let out a hearty chortle. "Seems Anna," he said her name with a hint of malice, "has to go to Singapore for a temporary contract job after this business trip and she doesn't want him to be neglected. Her mom told her she had to bring him to me." He rubbed his hands together. "Thank you Margaret!"

Leena let out a wide smile. "You like that, Danny?" She turned to him. "You wanna stay here for a little longer?"

"Yessss," he grinned and distractedly held up Lil's teething ring, eyes widening when Lil took it and batted it hard against his chest.

Leena watched Myka wriggle out from Helena's embrace and give Pete a big hug before slapping him on the back. She noticed tears of joy rolling down the side of the man's nose and thinned her lips in admiration. She placed a hand on his shoulder and watched the colors of pride blur around him. This was going to be fun, wife or no wife.

Claudia was beginning to get pissed off. She'd just finished deactivating the seventh artifact that had been playing up. What she didn't need right now was a telling off from Mrs. Frederic. Surprisingly, the regal woman hadn't made a single appearance, so Claudia was able to stew about the fights she'd been having with her wife. Ten years. She shook her head and began to mop up a puddle of rain off the floor. Ten fucking years and Leena had only just told her. With her brother. She wrinkled her nose in disgust and scrubbed the floor harder. A small feeling of regret caused her to pause. Leena hadn't known Tim… who knows if the man had even known who Leena really was. Her heart ached and she looked down at her wedding ring and the tattoo on her wrist with a shake of her head before getting back to work.

_God damn Claudia Donovan_. Leena's smile darkened into a frown as she watched Daniel sat on Artie's lap, telling him all about school in Boston. This was supposed to be an amazing day. It was supposed to be a celebration of father and son being reunited with a bright future ahead. The problem was that she couldn't stop thinking about the annoying, stubborn woman a few miles down the road. She had texted her wife four times and received no reply. She'd asked for them to talk to each other, to just explain a little more about the situation and to go on from there. After sending a fifth and final one, Leena turned off her phone and dedicated the rest of her evening to the adorable, curious little boy sat on her couch.

Feeling a little nauseous around 9pm, she left an amorous Helena and Myka on the couch and went up to bed. She wished she could say that the absence of her wife made her unable to sleep, but as her head hit the pillow, her eyes closed and her body let her have the rest she obviously needed.

The pain was indescribable. Sure, she had had menstrual cramps, and they hurt like hell…but this was unreal. Pulsing, aching agony rolled through her body. What she didn't expect was the intense vomiting as she lost the blood. She was in a hospital, in a room on her own. A tall, gentle black man came in and rubbed her back but it didn't help. She just wanted to go home and cry and punch something and sleep and forget. A nurse came into the white, empty room and soothed her but that didn't help either. The need to push came and she found herself burying herself in the older man's arms, sobbing into his chest as she passed her child. A kiss to the top of her head was all she felt alongside the excruciating pain… then it was gone. Claudia was in an empty room, it was dark and she gasped out, grabbing the sides of the bed as she pulled herself up. The bed was soaked in sweat and her pillow drenched with tears and she did the first thing her groggy, traumatized body could do. Grabbing the phone, she clicked her first speed dial contact and cried into her hand.

Leena was having a strangely relaxed sleep. It was like all her worries and cares were being taken from her and she curled up, rolling the end of the duvet under her feet. Her breasts stung but she managed to semi-ignore the pain as she slumbered. That was until 3am when her phone buzzed and she woke up with a start. Slackly pulling her phone into view, she lay on her back with a flop and croaked out a "hello?" What she wasn't expecting was the sound of heavy panting and sobs as Claudia tried to breathe.

"I'm sorry," the Caretaker wailed. "I'm sorry… I'm sorry, Leena."

"Claudia?" Leena sat up. "What happened?" She frowned and turned on the light, slipping out of bed.

"I'm sorry," came the babble and Leena began to think her wife had done something stupid. Another hacking sob sounded down the phone and the innkeeper jumped into action, throwing on some casual clothes over her nightwear and stepping into some shoes.

"Claud? What did you do?" Leena asked urgently. "What happened? Claudia?"

"I'm so sorry," the redhead wailed, covering her eyes with her wet hands. She saw the whole thing over and over again in her head and rolled onto her side, letting the phone drop to the soaked mattress. She curled up and bit down on her forearm, trying to keep the rest of her tears at bay.

After trying to coax a further reaction from her wife, Leena hung up and dashed out of the house, shrugging on a coat before flinging herself into the car. She drove as safely as she could, then when she reached the Warehouse, jogged through the umbilicus, asthma be damned. The sound of sobbing greeted her ears and she rushed over to the sleeping quarters where she found Claudia kneeling on the floor, bent over at the waist as she clutched the bedding in her fists. "Claudia?" Claudia foggily turned and blinked at the woman stood above her. Leena's nostrils flared as she tried to catch her breath, concern and anguish flooding her face. "Honey-"

"I'm sorry," Claudia cried out and leapt off the floor, burying herself in her partner's arms. "I'm sorry…"

"Oh sweetie, it's okay…I should have told you." Leena soothed, rubbing her fingers against Claudia's scalp to calm the woman down. "Hey… It's okay…"

Claudia shook her head hastily. "No… no, I saw it. I dreamt it. I'm sorry," she hiccupped. Her fingers fumbled and she pulled off Leena's coat, frantically lifting the woman's sweatshirt and pajama top up reveal smooth honey-brown skin. She only just managed to press her shaky lips just below the woman's belly button when another sob caught her off guard.

It all clicked into place. Leena fingered the sweaty hair slowly and felt breath leave her chest. She felt fingernails pinch into her back as Claudia held her tightly. Tears flooded her eyes immediately but she sniffed them back. _Time to be strong_. She slipped onto the floor and straightened her legs as Claudia automatically crawled snugly onto her lap, pressing her face into the innkeeper's neck. "Shhh, it's okay… It was a long time ago," Leena swallowed heavily. "It's okay." Claudia continued to cry, refusing to move from her comfy place. "Shh," Leena ran her hands up and down the slim back, closing her eyes and focusing on the calming energy between them. "I'm okay," she smiled. "I'm pregnant, and I'm okay."

"The pain," Claudia mumbled sadly. "I…I-"

"Shhh," Leena sighed, "It was painful, huh?" Claudia nodded and continued to blubber. "Oh baby, it's okay…" she said firmly. "Everything is okay. It's sad, I know…" she felt her tongue lift to the top of her mouth as a wave of emotion caught her off guard. She blinked through tears. "But I'm fine, Tim is fine… It was a different time."

Claudia calmed down slightly and looked up, smiling briefly when Leena rubbed tears away from her cheeks. "Tim… He was there."

Leena nodded. "He was. He's a good man. You'd like him." She let out a soft grin and wiped Claudia's chin with her thumb. "He was the one who told me to tell you the truth."

"I'm sorry… I shouldn't have reacted th-that way," Claudia stammered, more tears overwhelming her.

"Honey," Leena closed her eyes and kissed her lips. "You had every right to, okay? You didn't know the ins and outs. I shouldn't have waited ten years to tell you." She looked down as Claudia continued to compose herself, one hand possessively settled on her lower abdomen.

Talking was really hard right now. Claudia had tried to get her mouth to say "I love you" three times. Each time, her lips would quiver and her throat would tighten. On the fourth try, it came out as a rushed pant and Leena's face brightened.

"Well I love you too," the innkeeper whispered. "Can I take this as proof that you're not gonna leave me?"

Claudia's nose scrunched as she felt herself begin to cry again. She shook her head and let out a "No," before hugging Leena tightly once more.

"Good… I wasn't ready to bring up a baby with half your genes by myself." Leena chuckled. She tapped Claudia and lifted herself up off the floor before taking her wife's hand and leading her over to the bed. "God… you soaked this thing."

"Sorry," Claudia mumbled, standing on shaky legs. She watched as Leena changed the bed, grabbing some spare sheets from the drawers in the corner of the bedroom. She shivered, adrenaline and the lack of heat making her arms vibrate. "M-Make love to me." she suddenly murmured.

Leena's back straightened and she brushed off her hands, dumping the bed covers on the floor at the side of the large four poster bed. "What?" She turned with raised eyebrows. Claudia would never say that in a million years, not in a serious manner anyway. The only time she ever said it was when her wife was mocking her. And yet here Claudia was, shivering like a leaf in the middle of the room.

"I need you," Claudia had her arms crossed to keep herself warm and she looked up almost shyly. "Please…" She sniffed.

Two strides and Leena was in the caretaker's arms, her lips making a strong assault on Claudia's mouth. It took Claudia a few seconds to figure out what was happening before she wrapped her arms around Leena's shoulders and reciprocated, pushing her with her body, one protective hand still splayed across the bloated stomach. She pulled Leena's sweatshirt off with one pull of her free hand and lay the woman down on the bed. She followed and rolled onto her back, grasping Leena's hand until the innkeeper was settled on top. She took Leena's hand and pulled back the waistband of her own cotton shorts. Slowly, she pressed the woman's hand down her front until she could feel her wife's fingers press between her legs. She watched Leena's eyes close at the texture, then did the same when demanding lips nipped at her own. Leena's tongue stroked hers, the kisses between them growing in intensity. Claudia felt fingers enter her and groaned, widening her thighs further. She kept a hold of Leena's hand, stroking it back and forth with her palm as the innkeeper thrust hard.

Biting against Claudia's chin, Leena squeezed her eyes tightly shut and felt the redhead's thigh fit snugly between her own legs. She may have gotten slightly carried away, giving pleasure to her wife with her hands until Claudia's grunting turned into a shrill moan. "Oh god," Claudia panted, arching up into the woman's hand.

Leena's lips moved down from her attack on Claudia's chin to the t-shirt still worn by the caretaker. She found Claudia's nipple through the sleeping shirt and clamped down gently with her teeth, shocking another loud groan from Claudia's lips. Leena pulled away briefly and looked up. "Want me to slow down?" she breathed, rubbing herself against Claudia's thigh with a little more urgency.

"N-No, no." Claudia practically howled out her pleasure, forcing Leena's hand further inside her. Leena lifted her wife's t-shirt and ducked her head underneath, pressing kisses to one of her breasts before she opened her mouth and sucked hard. Claudia panted rapidly, bucking her hips into the woman's hand. She pushed down on the back of Leena's hand hard and felt the fingers inside her curl. Leena's tongue swirled around the small breast, then she sucked again.

Holding Leena's head against her, Claudia's back arched and she bucked a few more times until her the pressure got too great. She came strongly around the innkeeper's fingers, her mouth open wide. She would have sucked in a breath of air had she the energy to do so and waited for the orgasmic waves to diminish before she finally treated her lungs. Leena's head appeared out from under her t-shirt and she smiled softly, pecking Claudia on the lips. She didn't pull out, she stayed exactly where she was and revelled in her lover's heavy breathing. Claudia's fingers played with her hair and she pulled her back down for a kiss. They may have spent minutes making out, but Claudia wouldn't have been surprised if it had taken hours for them to get bored.

At 7am, Leena was naked, lying on her side and drawing circles on Claudia's chest with a finger and a distant grin. Claudia watched her with a quirked eyebrow, her own smile gradually making its way across her face. "You know… when you want, you can talk to me about this. Okay?" She felt a small flick against her nipple and giggled. "Okay?"

"Okay," Leena nodded. She leant forward and kissed her wife again, "For now I just wanna soak up the love."

"Ohhhh," Claudia smirked. "Soak up the love, I see…" She nodded and stole a kiss, then lowered herself further down the bed. Swallowing heavily, she shook the imagery of her dream from her mind and kissed Leena's belly, then went even lower. She smiled and hovered over the small patch of trimmed hair between Leena's legs. She blew cold air and waited for the giggle. Leena squirmed and nearly pushed her away but managed to control herself with a laugh.

"Claud…" Leena whined, widening her legs. At the first graze of Claudia's tongue she clenched the pillow in her fist. Claudia's eyes never left hers, and a hand settled on top of her abdomen. A thumb stroked her skin gently and she smiled, then leaned back and let her wife have her way with her.

Just before Leena went back to sleep for the third time, she pondered why Claudia had had the dream. She stretched and played with the hair at the nape of Claudia's neck. She felt a kiss to her breast and let out a smile. The redhead had been so distraught, so seemingly traumatized and yet Leena was surprisingly calm. Now that she shared the heartache with her wife it was like something was lifted from her shoulders. This wouldn't happen again, she made sure of it. She reached down and caressed Claudia's lower back, then her backside. She smiled as Claudia snuggled closer and she traced the tattoo on the redhead's shoulder blade. Though Leena at the time hated the idea of Claudia getting another, the caretaker insisted she have it to help her with the acceptance of her status. The Warehouse was Claudia's home, a place where she could fall back on and thrive - but that place was sometimes scary and she hadn't wanted the role. But this was her job and it was who she was and her way of dealing with that was to get another tattoo. She already had four. "To boldly go" was written on her hip in script to remind her that she _could _be like Picard if she wanted, "L", was written in morse code on her wrist (much to the innkeeper's initial chagrin), a sketch of an exotic flower that she had stolen from Leena's sketchbook after falling in love with it was on her foot, and the blueprint of her sonic screwdriver was on her back, running down her spine. Truth be told, after getting used to her wife's body art, Leena had to admit that the tattoos were stupidly geeky but ridiculously hot.

She traced the eye of horus, dotting her finger around the iris. She remembered when Claudia had come back from a "day at the Warehouse" to reveal the new tattoo. What had shocked her the most was the fact that the color of the eye was her own. Hazel-brown. The innkeeper decided she could have wasted her time being angry at her wife, but she was too touched. Claudia's marring of her own skin showed the caretaker's utter devotion to their lives together and that made her both overwhelmed and weepy-eyed. She felt a sudden thrust against her and blinked. Claudia had begun to moan in her sleep, leaning up on her forearms. "Claud…" Leena whispered, running her fingers up Claudia's side and around her ribs. "Honey," she tried to either rouse her or stop the sudden kissing assault Claudia had on her neck as she continued to thrust.

"What?" Claudia croaked back.

"Oh," Leena squeaked. "I uhh," she laughed nervously. "I didn't know you were awake."

"I may be awesome, but I don't think I can instigate sex while I'm sleeping." Claudia giggled and bit her neck gently.

Leena shrugged with a smirk but the expression was lost quickly when a thrust against her center caught her off guard. "Wouldn't put it passed you," she struggled to let out grin.

Claudia hushed her with a hand over her mouth before moving it over to Leena's wrist and pinning her to the bed. "Shhh…" She pressed her lips to Leena's. Leena watched her carefully, but nodded as she felt her other hand being pinned. Claudia's power over her had began to loosen.

"Harder," Leena whined. Claudia complied and placed both hands on either side of Leena's head before dipping her hips and applying strong pressure to Leena's clit with her thigh. They rocked together, bucking against each others' thighs until Leena felt her head swim and she clutched Claudia's back tightly. When they both climaxed, Leena swore she would never be able to move again.

"That's enough," she groaned. "Any more and I won't be able to sit down for a week," she smiled despite herself.

Claudia settled her head against Leena's chest and looked up, delivering a delicate peck to the underside of her chin. "I love you." she murmured. "I will never voluntarily leave you…I can promise you that now."

Leena froze and looked down, pulling Claudia up for another kiss. She closed her eyes and nodded. "I know. I love you too." She rolled over and wriggled forward, smiling when her slightly larger tummy touched Claudia's. "I'm the same too. I promise."

Claudia's nose wrinkled and she stroked Leena's nose with a finger. "Ugh, that dream… Tell me one thing?"

"Mm," Leena winced.

"You were in the hospital? When… you know…"

"Yeah."

Claudia swallowed heavily and nodded. So the dream happened… like that. "Oh… yeah, okay." She pursed her lips. "I think I need to hug you again." She let out a watery smile and shuffled until she was able to wrap her arms around her wife.

"Hey," Leena soothed at the death grip the woman had on her neck. "I'm good." She pecked her shoulder and felt tears prick her eyes unexpectedly. Claudia wouldn't let go though, and while the innkeeper needed to show her face back at the B&B to get breakfast ready, for once, she realized this was more important. She rolled onto her back and held Claudia tightly, grunting slightly when the caretaker leant on her belly too heavily. "Ow...ow." She froze and opened her eyes. Claudia pulled back and looked down, confused. Leena merely smiled. She was getting bigger, her child was growing and though she wished she could zoom forward to a time when her baby was moving inside her, this was the next best thing.


	8. Chapter 8

Hey there, welcome, welcome... you made it to fluff land! Second last chapter here. I'll be sad to see this finished but I've also nearly finished another little ficlet which will be posted after the final chapter. Please let me know what you think, it feeds my muse :)

oxoxoxoxo

Waking up with your wife's protective hand across your tummy was one of the most amazing feelings in the world. Sure, she had a lot of "best feelings in the world" but this didn't mean that she couldn't add to the collection. Leena stirred and wriggled back, smiling at the open mouthed kisses being delivered to her back.

"Time to wake up," Claudia husked, moving her hand lower with a lecherous grin until Leena's eyes snapped open.

"I'm awake."

Claudia chuckled and rolled her over, pecking Leena's lips before she sat up. "Ugh, that was amazing."

Leena stretched and yawned. The yawn turned into a happy smile and she tussled her hair slightly to neaten it.

"It was. Same again tonight?" the innkeeper grinned.

"You betcha." Claudia chortled as she began to get dressed. "So Pete has to find a school for Daniel? Or…"

"Or what?" Leena frowned and peeled her bra off the floor before putting it on gingerly. Her nipples were so sensitive from both the pregnancy and last night that she felt slightly light-headed.

"Or…" Claudia moved from one foot to the other. "Or you could home-school him."

Leena's head whipped round and she stared at her wife with an open mouth. "Are you crazy?" Claudia shrugged. "You know what home-schooling does? It isolates a child. I know, I was one."

"So was I," Claudia murmured and waited for Leena to tie her slacks before she took hold of the waistband and pulled her over and wrapped her arms around her waist. "It's tough, I know… but you think putting him in a school for ten months is going to be any less damaging? He'll be making friends, and then he has to leave. Or he'll get bullied and he'll wanna leave all together." She wrapped her arms around Leena's shoulders. "It's sucky. Both have pros and cons."

"Claudia…"

Claudia pressed her body flush against the innkeeper's. "I'm just saying what I think is a good idea."

"He needs to socialize," Leena protested. She wasn't a teacher. She couldn't be a teacher - no freaking way.

"He can socialize when you take him to the playground. He can experience all the mean kids… The nice kids, make friends…"

"And he can do that at school," Leena shook her head. "No, I'm not doing it. You can't make me do something like that and put all this pressure on me-"

"Hey, hey," Claudia soothed with a chuckle and pecked her forehead. "Shh…" She murmured. "I didn't say you have to do anything you don't want to. All I'm saying is it could have been an option." She frowned at the hands clutching at her back and rubbed Leena's shoulder again. "Shh, I won't make you do anything." She felt a huff against her right shoulder. "You're really that spooked about homeschooling…"

"I think a boy like Daniel will do better in a school environment. He's a loner kid, he'll be even worse if we keep it that way."

Claudia nodded and rubbed her cheek with a thumb. "Like I said, just a suggestion." She leaned forward and gave the innkeeper a sultry kiss. "Come on, B&B, shower, breakfast…chill."

"In that order?" Leena sniffed and gave a smile.

"Yeah," Claudia grinned. "Unless you want a chilly shower. I won't judge." She waggled her eyebrows, chuckling at the gentle smack to her ass, then spent a good few more moments enjoying the feeling of Leena pressed up against her. "I'm sorry."

Leena squinted her eyes. "No more apologizing, please."

"Okay…" Claudia sighed. "But I really am." And with that, she moved away and got her jacket.

For the next few days, things remained happy. Contented. The Warehouse was quiet and it seemed like the Caretaker's good mood meant less artifact disturbances.

Leena's morning sickness disappeared after a few weeks and the woman was so bubbly, people (mainly Artie) were starting to get sick of it.

After entering the B&B after a hard day at work, Claudia had come home one day to find Leena lying on the couch, her blouse rolled up passed her ribs, Lil wedged in between her body and the back cushion, and Daniel sat cross-legged in between the innkeeper's. "I'm not even gonna ask," she smirked, an eyebrow raising as high as it could go.

Daniel grinned and patted at the woman's belly again, prodding slowly and watching as Leena did the same.

"I can feel her." Leena murmured with a wide smile.

"You can?" Claudia dropped her bag on the floor and approached the couch hastily.

"Mm…" Leena shifted up the couch to make way for her wife and watched as the redhead tossed Daniel up in the air before sitting down with him in her arms. He giggled wildly and plopped down in her lap. "The kids were helping me feel her." She said, looking up at Claudia who was transfixed by her belly. The bump was pretty visible now; a smooth slope. Usually nobody could see it due to Leena's choice of clothing but now, Leena wore a tight fitting blouse, almost as if to show it off. Claudia placed her hand against the soft skin and smiled as Leena developed a faraway look on her face as she concentrated. Suddenly she chuckled and nodded. "There it is again." The agent leaned forward to give her jubilant wife a kiss, then looked down at the young boy in her arms before glancing at Lil.

"What's wrong with Little Miss Grumpy?" She twitched her head to gesture over to the baby who had a stormy look in her eyes, chewing on her small fingers.

Leena rolled her eyes. "She's in one of those '_I don't trust anybody who isn't my mommy_' moods."

"She was crying before," Daniel helpfully supplied, snuggling back in Claudia's arms as if to prove that he was being the good one.

"Oh she was, was she?" Claudia smiled down at him. "Did you help stop the noise?" Daniel nodded proudly. "Good boy."

Leena shook her head and stroked Lil's head with a finger. The poor child had had such a bad time with teething, the medicine cabinet in the downstairs bathroom was now full of only Calgel, teething rings and baby Tylenol. Tomorrow, it would be Lil's first birthday, and each adult in the B&B felt desperately sorry for the youngest Bering-Wells member and the pain she was going through. Lil felt the stroking to her head and looked up at the innkeeper. Her lips had begun to quiver and she held up her arms sadly. "Oh sweetie, come here." Leena patted her chest and watched as Lil crawled up her body before flopping down on her little safe patch of human. Leena glanced at Claudia and thinned her lips, trying not to smile at the sorry little whimpers against her chest. "Awww, it's okay."

"It's so bad, I kinda just wanna give her our present already." Claudia sighed, letting Daniel escape to go and play with his Lego.

"She'll be okay," Leena whispered. "They back soon?"

"Yeah," Claudia replied. "Getting the decorations from town. Myka texted me a photo of the cake," she laughed and turned her phone towards her wife. The picture showed a large white box housing a cake shaped like a cow, with black patches of icing that spelled out 'Lillian'. Leena laughed heartily and continued to rub the child's back. For a baby, Lillian was pretty darn obsessed with cows. She had a cow onesie, a cow teddy that she refused to sleep without and every freaking animal that she saw on the television was instantly named "cowwww". Besides "Mama", the only other words Lillian Bering-Wells could say were "No," and of course her beloved bovine.

"Awesome." Leena smiled. She pulled away from the baby hug and let Lil sit up. She wiped the baby's cheeks with her thumb and sighed. "At least her temperature's going down."

"Was she bad?" Claudia asked.

"Screaming." her wife replied. "Danny did a good job though," she smiled and watched Claudia hold her arms out. Lil wobbled as she stood up and toddled over to Claudia, bashing into her belly.

"Oooff, hello McQueen. How's it going?" She gave a quirky grin and lifted her up. "Want me to get dinner started?"

"Sure." Leena sat up the rest of the way and held out a hand. "Wait though…"

"What is it?" Claudia looked around.

Leena tutted and pulled her by the chin, pressing her lips tightly against Claudia's. "Just wanted to say hi."

"Oooooooooh," Claudia whispered with a smirk. "I think I'm getting lucky tonight, Lil."

"Shh!" Leena covered her eyes. "No you're not." She peeked through her fingers.

"Shhhh!" Lil parroted, pressing her finger to her lips, dark infantile eyes gleaming cheekily. Leena threw up her hands and stood up.

"I'll cook." She said with a roll of the eyes. "You seem to be doing a good job corrupting our goddaughter." Claudia giggled back and threw the baby in the air, watching her giggle. Daniel, of course, suddenly got jealous and asked for Claudia to do the same to him. Before she knew it, she was performing some kind of Circ du Soleil tribute act on the rug. At least this was better than paying for a gym membership.

Lil actually had an amazing first birthday. The pain in her gums had eased and she enjoyed her birthday cake immensely, actually squealing in delight when it was revealed. The day was incredibly happy, and the Warehouse family found themselves taking photos on a day they'd look back on fondly.

Having gotten away with her pregnancy being barely noticeable, at 22 weeks, Leena felt the change. It was harder to stand up after sitting, her feet hurt and boy was she getting big. The fluttering that she'd started to feel around Lil's first birthday were now fully fledged kicks. She swore that she was smiling in her sleep when she felt the strange sensations. Claudia, on the other hand, was getting beyond frustrated. Every time she put her hand on her wife's belly, the baby would stop moving and almost go into hiding. What upset her most was that Helena had been the first to feel the baby. It was Claudia's child. She should have been the one to feel her first.

"HOLY CRAP!"

Leena jumped awake at the scream and sat up with wide, bleary eyes. She turned to see Claudia who had a magical smile on her face, her mouth agape.

"What the hell, Claud?" She winced and rubbed at her face, sitting up slowly.

"I felt her," Claudia whispered, tears springing to her eyes, pulling her hand from under the woman's shirt.

"You gave her the freaking hiccups is what you did." Leena huffed but lay on her back, knowing that any second Claudia would want to press her head against her abdomen to try and feel more. "Here…" She scooted up the bed and pulled Claudia close. She clutched her chest. "God, you scared me."

"Sorry," Claudia grinned sheepishly and wiped a few tears away from her cheeks. She sniffled and pressed her ear against the soft skin, rolling up Leena's maternity sleeping t-shirt. That was something she was still trying to get used to… these crazy clothes that catered for big bellies.

Leena's fingers immediately tangled in Claudia's hair and she watched the redhead close her eyes blissfully. The dark almond eyes snapped open when she felt the said hiccups. "Oops…" the caretaker grinned, feigning shame.

"Doesn't matter," Leena smiled, rubbing her thumb against Claudia's forehead, tracing each eyebrow and each small wrinkle. She was more relieved than anything, finally glad that there would be no more whining about their child hiding from her wife.

"Oh this is just so adorable," Claudia sighed, rubbing more tears away from her face. "And kinda creepy." She opened her eyes and watched Leena become drowsy. She squinted and peered at the clock on the nightstand, gritting her teeth when she realized it was 4am. "Oops," she whispered again but Leena was pretty much asleep to even acknowledge it. Claudia continued to feel the kicks and the tiny, rhythmic hiccups against her ear and began to murmur to her daughter quietly, telling her the story of a lonely innkeeper being saved by a geeky caretaker and how if it would be Oscar-worthy had it been adapted into a film and so on and so forth, etc, etc. She talked until she too fell asleep, along with her unborn baby. For the first time, before she nodded off, Claudia acknowledged that there was indeed three people sharing the Warehouse bed that night and the many more nights to come.

By the time Leena hit 7 months, the Warehouse team had managed to get a perfect system going. Leena had moved back into the inn, finding the steps to the umbilicus far too hard. Daniel had said he wanted to go to school soon after he had moved to South Dakota, and was transfered to Univille Elementary pretty swiftly after his arrival. He was so comfortable with his surroundings and the people of the B&B that he didn't bat an eyelid when Pete told him that he had to stay over at the Warehouse at nights. As long as his daddy tucked him in bed every night, or "Grandpa Artie" (the nickname of course caused the old man to bumble and grump in embarrassment) then he was perfectly happy. He loved school, and he'd made friends, and though Pete continued to warn him that it wouldn't be like this forever, the small boy let himself daydream about how cool it would be for him to stay in South Dakota.

Each morning after breakfast, Myka and Helena would drive him to school, and then take Lil to day care. They would then all meet Pete and Steve at the Warehouse and discuss the day's work. If a ping came up, Leena and either Myka, Pete or Helena would stay back and help with the school rounds.

It was perfect.

Well almost… Claudia was so close to dropping her grocery bag when she saw an old dark skinned man sat on the couch after coming home from her weekly shop. Her couch. He stood up shakily, mostly because of his age and extended a hand. "You must be Claudia," he smiled steadily at her.

She froze and looked down at the wrinkled hand, then at her shopping. Leena emerged from the dining room with two cups of tea and after seeing the scene unfold, raised her eyes calmly to Claudia's face.

Glancing at her wife, Claudia snapped out of her little funk and put the bag down before she took the man's clammy hand. "Nice to meet you. I guess you're Tim."

"I am," he grinned.

Claudia nodded and looked down at the shopping at her feet. "I uhh… I need to put these away. Be back in a minute?"

"Of course," Tim chirped. Claudia dashed out of the room with her groceries and placed them on the counter, rifling a hand through her hair. She braced herself against the sink and held a breath before releasing it slowly. When all the frozen goods were put away, she took a few more calming breaths and re-entered the living room, hoping to whatever was holy and fabulous up there that this would go okay.

Leena glanced at her and mouthed in concern, asking if she was okay. Claudia nodded and sat down opposite the man at the table. The innkeeper chuckled, relieved, and toddled over to the redhead, placing both hands on her shoulders as she stood behind her. She whispered gently. "He just came round to say hi. Don't freak." She pecked her on the top of the head causing the agent to blush and squirm in her seat.

"I'm sorry," Claudia apologized as Leena sat next to her. She looked up at the man. "I'm still trying to get my head around this."

He waved it off. "It's fine," he smiled and took a sip of his tea. "Leena was just telling me about how you've been writing songs for the baby?"

She groaned, knowing a darker blush was inevitable. "Yeah… kinda." she scrubbed at her face, trying to get rid of the grin that was threatening. "I usually play some tunes, puts her to sleep." She finally smiled and noticed his face brighten. She looked down to see Leena's hand on her thigh and kept her grin, sinking down slightly in her seat as she relaxed. They chatted for a long time, and Claudia had to admit that this guy was pretty damn funny. He was kind. She noticed a hint of sadness in his expressions as they talked about the impending birth and felt her heart clench again at the idea of him losing a child. With her wife. Totally and completely fucking weird.

"I remember when my Jessica was a baby," he spoke grandly, causing Claudia's eyes to widen. Leena merely smiled. "She wouldn't sleep unless we played The Carpenters on the stereo."

Claudia let out a cautious smile. So he had moved on… and had a family. Leena was right, it seemed. She had nothing to worry about, and the only reason she should have been jealous was because he was there when Leena went through hell. That they'd been through hell together. Claudia looked down at the rubbing to her knee and smiled. Then again, so had she. She'd been through so much with the innkeeper. So freaking much. MacPherson. Sykes. The deaths. Melissa… She plopped her head on Leena's shoulder, glad of the closeness of their chairs and let out a breath. "The Carpenters? Really?" she smirked.

"Oh I know," Tim shook his head. "Hated them… darn child screamed and screamed until either I sung Top of the World or kept the stereo on."

"How old is she?" Claudia asked fondly.

He grinned and pulled his old weathered wallet out of his pocket. "24. And here's the lil'un. Her son, Max." He handed the photo over with his ever shaky hand and Claudia wrinkled her nose at the cute. Sure, it was kind of weird that Leena was only biologically a few years older than Tim's daughter, but it seemed that both parties had gotten passed their history and now had an unbreakable relationship.

"Dude, so Mrs. Frederic is totally a great-grandma, huh?"

"Yes," Leena chuckled. She winced slightly and placed a comforting hand on her belly, closing her eyes when the baby finally stopped spinning around and after a little stretch, apparently curled back up to go to sleep. She'd never get over that feeling. It was incredible, and somehow felt as if her abdomen wasn't even hers anymore, but something stuck onto her body to house this tiny human. Eventually after a few hours of chatting, Tim grew tired and he stood up slowly, grabbing his cane.

"Girls, it has sure been a pleasure, but I'm afraid I have to go home." He enveloped Leena in a tight hug and placed his hand on her tummy. "You look after your Momma, little one. We got a deal?" He smiled and turned to Claudia, opening his arms. She glanced at Leena who ushered her with her hand. Walking closer she wrapped her arms around him and almost passed out when he gave her a huge squeeze. "And you, thank you for looking after my girl and loving her the way you do."

"Easiest job in the world," Claudia sniffed slightly, trying to keep herself from getting too emotional.

"It's my 70th birthday next Friday. You have to come." He gave an enigmatic smile to both women, and pottered out of the room to let himself out.

"Wh- does he drive by himself?" Claudia whispered to her wife.

Leena laughed and shook her head, placing herself behind the woman and wrapping her arms around her middle, keeping her close. They both shuffled to the front door where Tim got into the back of a dark Mercedes. "Oh…"

"Yep." Leena smiled, nuzzling at the back of Claudia's neck.

"Should have known… He's a Frederic."

Leena's smile was huge and she leaned in a little further to kiss Claudia's cheek, belly be damned. "You're getting lucky tonight." she husked in Claudia's ear.

Claudia squealed and clapped her hands. The old man in the car mistook it for a wave and waved back. Giggling, the couple finally mirrored the gesture. "I see it, you know?" Claudia began, "I see why you liked him." she waved to the charming old man.

"Funny," Leena smiled as the car sped off and they were left swaying in the porch. "He thinks the same about you." Claudia's eyebrows rose and she spun round in her wife's arms, hands reaching up to lock behind the innkeeper's neck. She played with the curls at Leena's nape and quirked a grin.

"Yeah?"

Leena brushed her nose against Claudia's. "Yep."

"I love you," Claudia sighed, pressing her face against Leena's chest. "I'm sorry I nearly bolted earlier."

Leena shrugged nonchalantly. "It's cool. I should have told you he was coming. Didn't expect you back so early."

They were silent for a while, holding each other, paying attention to the tiny movements of their child wriggling around to get comfy. "Hey Leen?"

"Hmm?" Leena's eyes opened and she stopped rubbing Claudia's back. She may have fallen asleep for about twenty seconds.

"Does 'tonight' strictly mean tonight? Or can it mean now?" Claudia looked up with a smirk and that smirk turned into a fully fledged beam when Leena wordlessly took the her hand and slowly led her up the stairs with a determined sway of the hips. _Now_. Claudia bit her lip as her fingers tangled with Leena's. _I guess that means now._

tbc


	9. Chapter 9

*wipes tear* Well this is the end of the story. I truly hope you enjoyed it, and there will be more little snippets and ficlets in this universe. Warnings for a birth scene, but then I don't understand why you'd be reading a pregnancy!fic if you're easily squicked. Anywho, I'd love a little feedback, and happy reading!

oxoxoxoxo

_Okay… that wasn't normal. Right?_ Leena held her stomach after bending down to pick up one of her wife's pairs of Pac-Man boxers when she felt a sudden, sharp pain to her side. She'd been feeling it more frequently, Braxton Hicks contractions growing in intensity.

Next thing she remembered, she was on the floor, hissing and backing herself against the bathtub. "Fuck…" She rolled onto her side and gasped out in pain as a thudding, dull pain began in her groin, travelling its way up her abdomen. She called out for someone, anyone to come and help. After a few minutes of unbearable pain, she watched as the door slowly opened. She closed her eyes in relief and tried to move but it was no use. Grasping the bathtub, she swivelled on her backside. "Honey," she said gently to a shell-shocked Daniel who stood motionless, holding onto his monster truck for dear life. "You know where your…" she gasped, "your Daddy is?"

He approached her slowly, placing his truck on the floor. "Is it the baby?"

"Yeah," she nodded, swallowing thickly. "You go and see if you can find your Daddy or Aunt Claudia, okay?" She watched his face closely, noting the fear in his eyes. "Can you do that for me?" He nodded slowly. "Good boy," she tried to smile and got up on her knees to try and rid the pain. "Go find someone."

"Okay," he said and dashed out of the room without his toy.

Within what felt like forever but was only for about ten minutes, she heard the sound of heavy footsteps coming up the stairs, combined with the tiny patter of Danny's lighter ones. "Leena?" Pete's voice flowed through the bathroom before he'd even walked in and she whined a quick 'in here.'

"Ohhhh crap…" He rushed to her side and placed a wary hand on her belly. "You in labor?"

"I dunno… is this what labor feels like?" She grit her teeth and used his arm as a stress ball, pinching hard.

"Well…" he blinked. "It usually hurts, really really bad."

"Yep, yep," she nodded. "Got it… that's what this is." She tried to stand up but her knees gave way and he caught her.

"Woah, woah… don't." He warned. "You want me to carry you the car?"

She shook her head hastily. "Just want Claudia," she murmured and closed her eyes as a contraction tore through her. "Oh god, just get a freakin' doctor."

Pete got out his phone, "Leena, we have to get you to a hospital."

"No, no… No hospital."

"Leena-"

"Pete, please!" She begged, "It's an hour to Rapid City. If this was any other case, I'd say sure… but this is happening fast. I feel like this is happening super fast." she licked the bead of sweat away from her lip. "No hospitals." she looked him in the eye, one hand wrapped around his arm. "Get Claudia, Myka… anyone. Just… towels," she groaned and backed herself against the bath, slackly pulling down her hose as well as her floppy fingers would let her. "This is happening right here… pretty much now." She let a tear roll down the side of her nose and let out a shuddering breath. "Vanessa," she bit her lip, holding down the wail that was desperate to be released. She didn't want to scare Daniel more than she'd already done.

"I'll ring them now," he promised and turned to his son. "Danny, go downstairs and watch some TV." Daniel was frozen on the spot. "Okay, dude? For me…"

Daniel nodded slowly and picked up his truck from the floor. "Is…Daddy, is Aunt Leena okay?"

"She will be," Pete nodded with a smile. "Just… go downstairs, turn the TV up real loud so we can all hear what you're watching."

Daniel liked that idea and scuttled off downstairs to watch some cartoons. Pete turned to Leena. "Right… oh crap, see…I'm trying to remember what to do here…"

"Well hurry up," Leena bore down and clenched his forearm again, digging her nails into the skin. "I haven't got enough time to wait for you to reminisce about Lamaze classes with your ex."

"Oooh," Pete shook off the insult with a grin. "You are mean when you're in pain."

"Fucking ring Claudia right now, or so help me…" she growled.

His eyes widened comically. "Okay, okay…" he shook his head and got up to lay some towels from the airing cupboard onto the floor. "Sheesh." He got back down on his knees and placed a hand on her knee as he pressed the phone to his ear. "Claud?" He turned back to Leena, "You wanna get in the bath?" He whispered. She nodded and did her best to climb in, slipping off her skirt awkwardly. At first she felt a little worried that it was Pete who was with her in the room, then a contraction came and she really, really didn't care. This shouldn't have been happening. She was 37 weeks pregnant. She shouldn't be going through this. Not yet. Surely those pains beforehand weren't labor pains, were they? Surely… They were just normal Braxton hicks contractions and she'd been used to them. She cried out and grabbed the side of the bath. It was like something from a freakin' movie. Why couldn't it have gone the way she wanted to? In a birthing center, with Claudia… with music on, and those fun looking bouncing ball thingies, and… She groaned again, another contraction, sweat beginning to literally drip down her chest. It was all going too fast. "You have to come over to the B&B," Pete said, turning his back.

"What's up?" Claudia asked, accepting the cold diet coke from Helena who sat at the opposite side of the table. "Thanks," she grinned and took a sip. The four of them, Myka and Lil included had gone to the diner for a late brunch.

"Claud, the baby's coming." Pete said, turning his back and lowering his voice. "I uhh… I dunno what I'm doing, she's acting like she's too far to go to the hospital and wouldn't move from the bathroom. You gotta come over."

The coke that had been in Claudia's mouth ended up on her cheese omelette. "What?" she stood up. "What? Are you… are you serious?"

"Yep," he said. A groan caught him off guard and he turned to Leena who was now only in her bra. "How're you doing?"

She shot him a death glare and gestured for the phone as she put the plug in the bottom of the tub and turned on the water. He handed her the phone and she sniffled lightly. "Claudia?"

"Yeah honey," Claudia said as she opened the door of the diner, shrugging on her jacket. "I'm coming home, right now." she said, looking back to see Myka and Helena trying to catch up.

"Hurts," Leena whimpered, then closed her eyes and threw the phone down onto the mat by Pete's knees petulantly. He rolled his eyes and picked up the cell, pressing it to his ear. "Hey…"

"Hi, on my way… just… oh my god."

"I know," he smiled. "You owe me big time for this, partner. She is mean," he breathed, earning a punch his arm. "Ow!"

"Fuckin' serves you right," Leena groaned, glad the water was lessening the pain… just a little.

"See?" Pete sighed. "Listen, I texted Vanessa, I'm gonna call her again."

"She's at the Warehouse with Artie," Claudia huffed. "Look, I gotta go. Be there in five minutes. Tell her that." Claudia said, easing herself into the back of Myka's car while Helena fastened Lil's seatbelt on her car seat. The baby, now nearly 14 months old was particularly chirpy, jabbering on and on to her parents about how delicious her meal had been.

"You okay, Claud?" Myka asked gently, as they drove up towards the B&B.

"Nope," Claudia bopped her knee anxiously. "Shit…Shit, shit, shit. In the bath? Really?"

"Shhhhhit," Lil screeched back.

Claudia covered her eyes. "Oh… my god, I am so sorry." Helena guffawed and Myka merely rolled her eyes.

"Don't sweat it. It was 'bollocks' yesterday." Myka smirked. "Nearly there…" she said soothingly, not exactly shocked when she saw Claudia wiping her eyes irritably in the overhead mirror. "Hey," she smiled at her friend. "You're ready for this, okay?"

"Really?" Claudia bit her knuckle as they pulled up the drive to Leena's B&B. "Because right now I feel so unready I might lose it."

"But you can't," Helena said, taking off her seatbelt. "Because she's going to be in quite a lot of pain right now… so freak out later when your daughter's born, okay?"

"Okay… okay," Claudia felt her heart beat irregularly and closed her eyes. She slapped her cheek. "Okay. Let's do this." She said and opened the front door with her keys before galloping up the stairs to find Leena squatted in the bath, Pete sat next to her, with a pile of towels at the ready. "Oh god… Leena," she soothed and approached the bath cautiously. "Hey…"

"Oh god, you're here," Leena groaned, holding her heavy tummy with soggy hands. "I… I didn't think you'd come so soon," she looked like she was on the verge of breaking down so the caretaker placed both hands her shoulders, trying not to look further into the tub.

This wasn't her expertise. At all. "Want me to come in there with you?" she asked gently despite her discomfort but Leena closed her eyes and shook her head. "Okay," she nodded and tried to focus on her own breathing. "Vanessa should be here any second, okay? Hang in there." she winced.

"Hang in there?" Leena growled. "Just… shut up," she begged suddenly causing Claudia's eyes to pop open.

"Woah," the redhead mouthed to Pete who was trying not to smirk.

"I… I am not giving birth in a bathtub," Leena wailed suddenly as yet another contraction flowed through her. She grit her teeth and stood on her knees, whimpering sadly.

"Oh honey, I think you are…" Claudia shuffled over to the tub until she was pressed against it. "And that's okay," she soothed, running her hand up and down Leena's back. "Vanessa will be here any minute." Leena suddenly shook her head frantically, her eyes still closed in anguish.

Pete frowned after a few minutes, "Leena?" he noticed the woman had gone very quiet, looking extremely focused. "Are you pushing? Nod or shake your head."

"Pushi…is that bad?" Claudia asked, looking around with haste as she tried not to freak out.

"Leena, you need to push?" Pete asked again but Leena was practically vacant, just a solid look of concentration. She was breathing hastily, her eyes closed tight.

Myka eased herself into the bathroom silently and shared a look with Pete.

"Hey, Leena." Myka said quietly, just to let the woman know she was there. "How're you doing, hon?" Maybe someone who had already given birth would soothe her. She and HG had squabbled about who would go upstairs and after a rock, paper, scissors match, the younger agent had won. What Myka didn't expect next was the sound of water splashing as Leena suddenly picked up her newly born baby out from under the water in shock. Her hands shook as she cuddled it against her, small sobs coming from her throat as the baby let out hacking splutters.

"Oh my god," Claudia sat on the floor with a thump, sharing an astonished look with her wife. "Wh…"

A loud gurgling scream sounded around the bathroom. Leena held the flailing infant against her, sniffing quietly before she pulled the child away from herself again. "Hi," she said, peering at the baby in wonder, completely forgetting about the pain, then she looked up suddenly, eyes wide. "It's… it's a boy."

"What?" Claudia scrambled back up and felt like she was about to faint. "Wh…what did you say?"

Leena sprinkled some of the water over her baby's head to clean him and lifted him away from her again to show the others. "Right? That's a boy?" She felt stupid doing it, but she knew in her state of shock she could easily get it wrong. And she was truly in shock. None of this had sunk in. She just gave birth in the bath. Actually gave birth. To a baby.

Her hands continued to shake from adrenaline and she pressed him against her chest again, grabbing a towel and wrapping him close. "Woah," Pete backed away. "Yep, that's a little dude there."

Claudia got up on her knees and continued to stare down at her son's face, his skin a strange purple color, obviously from the pressure changes of birth. She shifted further away from the bath and felt her head begin to swim. "Umm… guys, I don't…" she mumbled. "I don't feel so-" her words were cut off but Myka caught her just in time and lay her down on the floor, the caretaker's eyes rolling to the back of her head. What they didn't expect was for Leena to laugh suddenly, wincing at the pain in her abdomen, but it was so, so worth it.

"She really just fainted." Leena shook her head. "I… I don't get it," she giggled, "but I like it."

Myka smiled back, her nose wrinkling as she shuffled over to the bathtub. "Here," she held out the towel and grinned when Leena let her wrap the baby up. He was still a little disorientated, squirming and letting out occasional screams of distaste when he was handled strangely. "Oh wow… hey there, little guy." Myka smiled. She looked down into the bath and winced at the blood. "Honey, when you feel the need to push again, just let it happen nice and slowly, okay?"

Leena sniffled and nodded. She watched Myka rub at him vigorously before offering him back and Leena cuddled him close once he regained a healthier color.

Claudia bolted upright nearly ten minutes later and looked around warily. "He's still a he, right?"

"He's still a he," Leena smirked, closing her eyes as a wave of pain rumbled through her.

"Nice of you to join us," Vanessa smiled warmly, having joined them herself five minutes ago. "We need someone to cut his cord. You up for the job? Or is sleeping more fun?"

Claudia grumbled back and rubbed her eyes as she approached the bath slowly, ignoring the red color of the water and looking down at her child who was gurgling pretty happily now, his eyes black and beady. "Oh fuck… look at him. My little dewglobdrop." Her lip quivered.

"Not calling him that," Leena smiled tiredly as she watched Vanessa hand the scissors over to her wife.

"Kinda doesn't suit him, does it?" Claudia smiled and took them and her hands shook as she clipped the spongey tissue. "Oh wow…" she said for what seemed like the millionth time as Vanessa clipped the umbilical cord and wrapped him up. She pressed him against Leena's chest again and smiled warmly.

"Claud, take him…" Leena said gently after a few minutes, handing the infant over to Vanessa who gestured for the woman to hold her son.

Claudia opened her arms and watched his little feet curl up in the blanket he was wrapped in. "Hi," she sniffed and before she knew it, a steady stream of tears were running down her cheeks. "I'm kinda your baby-daddy." She let out her own giggle. "But you can call me mommy, or… or mama. Or the Alien Queen, or basically whatever you want," she sniffled. "Dude… you're really here."

"Not to spoil this really cute moment," Leena said, shivering. "But I kinda wanna get out of here now," She'd delivered the placenta, she'd nursed her child for a little while, and now all she could think of was getting warm, dry and settling herself in bed.

"Alright," Vanessa chuckled, and held her hands out. "Myka? Give us a hand?"

"Of course," Myka smiled and let Leena take hold of her arm. "Easy…"

Leena felt like she was about to cry again. "It really hurts."

"I know, sweetie," she said softly. "You can go sit in bed now and soak up the love," she watched her friend smile strangely, as if reliving a private joke. Claudia followed them closely, unable to take her eyes away from her new son. When Leena was finally tucked up in bed, she climbed the mattress and placed the baby in her wife's arms. Leena turned her head and smiled brightly, pulling the redhead closer for a kiss until they both looked down at the now sleeping baby. The caretaker propped her chin on Leena's shoulder and shook her head. "I don't get it. I just don't understand how he's a boy. I mean it's awesome, I wanted a boy too, I just… I'm confused."

Vanessa sat down at the foot of the bed carefully and shrugged. "You were using the prayer sheet from Min's temple, right?" Claudia nodded with an embarrassed bite of the lip. "Well, it's less of a prayer, more like a wish. Your wish was to get your wife pregnant, all by yourself - which you did," she let out a smile when she heard the tiny baby splutter slightly in Leena's arms. "So touching and reading the sheet caused a whole cocktail of male hormones to swim around your system. It's strange, you didn't experience any symptoms?"

Claudia fiddled with her thumb ring. "Just… a little hair on my belly," she whined at how embarrassing this all was, "and being a little more… aroused than usual," she added, peering through her fingers.

Vanessa chuckled. "There we go, then. You thought of any names?"

Leena looked down at the baby, smiling at his tuft of black hair. "I think so… I like the one we chose."

"Wh… but that was for a girl," Claudia huffed. She turned to her wife and sighed, "You sure? You like it?"

"I really, really like it." Leena grinned, kissing the baby's head before she put the little hat on his head after Myka passed it to her. "Elliott."

The brunette agent's eyes gleamed in shock and she looked at both of the women. "Elliott?"

Claudia smirked reluctantly. It was perfect, she had to admit. He was totally an Elliott. She nodded. "Yeah. Elliott."

"When did you choose that? You sly dogs!" Myka thwacked the mattress with a towel and let out a laugh. She'd suffered nine months of arguments from both women. They had bickered immensely, fighting over who had the best name, and who wasn't pulling their weight with ideas.

"Well, we'd kinda decided that Elliot was going to be 'her' name. But she's not a she, she's a he… so…"

Leena smiled. "And also… ET is kinda my favorite movie."

"Tell me something I don't know," Myka snorted. She turned to look at Claudia who was lying with her head against Leena's shoulder, staring down at the child. "Not sunk in yet?"

"Wh…?" Claudia looked up and blinked. "No…" she shook her head. "Oh god, I mean… I have a son. We have a son. A child. An actual baby…"

"I think we should just let her babble for a little while," Vanessa smiled. "May I?" Leena nodded and handed the baby over for her to check over. He was fine, it seemed. Completely fine, but she wasn't.

"Vanessa?" Leena said worriedly, and pulled back the sheets to reveal sopping, crimson red bedsheets. "I think I tore."

"Okay," the doctor soothed hastily but with a calm tone, looking down at the blood gathering between her legs, like this kinda thing happened all the time. "Now you can choose, stitches, or less painful but very artifacty?"

"Artifacty," Leena whined as Claudia took their son and ushered Myka out the room. "Claudia…" she sniffled.

"You want me to stay?" Claudia asked, surprised. Leena whimpered and nodded her head, feeling overly emotional and upset that she was bleeding. The caretaker smiled and approached the bed, wrapping her arms around her wife's shoulders, hugging her close as Vanessa silently worked away, mopping up the blood and closing the wound with a strange looking pen. "I am so proud of you," Claudia whispered into her ear. She wasn't surprised to feel Leena shaking against her as the adrenaline levels in her body dissipated slightly. The sound of crying got louder, but she carried on talking, staring down at her baby who was now resting against Leena's chest. "I don't know anybody who is as brave, or who could be so quiet, and so focused, and amazing," she smiled when the innkeeper buried her face into her chest. "You did it, Leen."

"I did it," Leena nodded to herself, sniffling loudly now.

"There we go," Vanessa soothed, "You should heal very quickly with that. Let's get you out of bed so we can change these sheets and fit you with a clean pad. You can go to sleep if you want."

After ten minutes of trying to actually get Leena out of bed, she was changed, cleaned and prepared for sleep once more. It had been horrible to watch; the innkeeper sobbing out in pain every time she was moved. Eventually when she was finally comfortable, Leena had finally fallen asleep and baby Elliott was spending his first few hours downstairs, safe in Claudia's arms. The caretaker looked down at the dark eyelashes decorating his eyes. "I just… wow." She shook her head, not entirely sure what to say.

"He's got your eyes," Helena smiled, peering down at the almond shaped lids of the new addition to the family. The infant began to whimper and Claudia felt her heart beat faster. Everybody was watching her and this was really, really scary. She hoisted him up slightly, letting him rest on her chest for comfort and smiled when, after a few minutes he settled down, the snuffles lessening as he got more and more comfortable by the second.

"Daddy, why is he so sleepy?" Daniel asked curiously, sat on his father's knee.

"Don't answer that," Claudia warned with a smirk. "Just… don't answer that."

"Well," Pete sighed but didn't listen and looked down at his son whose eyes were wide with curiosity. "Babies are very tired, especially when they come out of their mommies tummies," he said, unaware of Myka's proud gaze. "And because they're so used to being all snuggly and warm," he hugged his arms around himself, then tickled his son. "And now they're in the big wide world and they're cold and it's all very exhausting." He grinned when Daniel nodded and snuggled closer.

"Can I hold him?" Came the voice and for the first time in years, Claudia actually jumped. She rolled her eyes and turned around to see Mrs. Frederic perched on the couch arm next to her with a smile on her face. "Claudia, he is beautiful." Irene smiled and Claudia was pretty sure the woman had a tear in her eye. The younger woman awkwardly shifted her son before laying him safely in the old Caretaker's arms.

"You knew, didn't you?" Claudia's nose wrinkled. "You knew it'd be a boy."

"I had a feeling," Irene shrugged coyly and stared down at her kind-of grandson. She paused at that thought. Grandson. He was her grandson, even if it wasn't a blood or a legal relation. Though their relationship had once been strained by guardianship and legality, Mrs. Frederic had to admit to herself that Leena would always be a daughter to her. Elliott stretched in his swaddling cloth and yawned sleepily before blinking open his eyes. "Well hello there," Mrs. Frederic said to the small bundle. Elliott blinked a few times again, before closing his eyes and falling asleep once more. "And his weight?"

"6 pound 10." Claudia smiled, grinning even wider when he was placed back into her arms. "Three weeks early, little sneak." She bent down and kissed his head. "Frak, I'm a mom." sniffing, she shook her head. "He's here." She paused, realising she was in a room full of people. Though they were her people, her family, she knew she needed to have a little quiet time. "Umm… I'm gonna go upstairs, chill with this little guy for a bit. That cool?"

Myka smiled and nodded. "Take your time, Claud. Give us a shout if you need anything."

Claudia nodded and stood up, cuddling her cargo close before she placed him against her shoulder and carefully climbed the stairs. Leena was wincing in her sleep, letting out the occasional moan as she suffered from contractions while she slumbered. Sitting on the bed gently, Claudia took a long look at her wife before she slipped under the covers and lay Elliott on her thighs. She would have freaked even more had she any less experience. She thanked Myka and H.G for letting her care for Lil when she was a baby, and though didn't realize that the practice was important at the time, now felt extremely grateful. Elliott was fast asleep, looking completely angelic, black hair sticking up from under his little cap. His skin was darker than she'd expected for a newborn, almost as dark as his mother's, and his nose and lips were identical to the innkeeper's. "Mama's boy," she whispered with a smile, unsurprised when a tear trickled down her nose. "I'll change that soon enough," she cleared her throat and blinked. "When you're old enough, you and me are gonna drive your mama crazy," she sniggered. "You, me, Danny and Pete, huh? I mean… I kinda fathered you, so I guess I'm one of the guys where games ware concerned, right?"

"If you teach him to get past my record on Super Mario, I'm gonna kill you," the tired voice croaked next to her and Claudia smiled widely, shuffling up the bed. Leena rolled onto her back and bit back tears as she tried to sit up. She rubbed her eyes and yawned, thinning her lips in thanks when Claudia handed her some painkillers. She took the glass of water handed over, keeping her eyes on her child. Her child. A wave of emotion overcame her and before she knew what was happening, she was sobbing into her hands once more. Thirty years. She had wanted a child of her own for thirty years and here he was, her little blessing dressed in a gender neutral onesie. So she'd have to sell some the clothes they'd already bought. And some she'd knitted. A small part of her grieved for the daughter she wouldn't have - but it was mainly materialistic. She'd made countless dresses and cute little skirts. When she thought about it, though, part of her secretly wished for a son. It made what she and Claudia had made together all the more special. More impossible. Claudia placed a hand on her shoulder, then kissed the spot and rubbed her back as she sniffled. "Shhh, awww honey." she soothed with a gentle smile. "You did it."

Leena stiffly peeled off her vest top and opened her arms. "Come on, let me have a look at this little guy," she sniffed when Claudia placed him in her arms and she sighed, pulling off his hat. He gurgled quietly, looking up at his mother with unfocused, rolling eyes. "Hey," she smiled and stroked his nose gently. She gathered him against her chest and watched as he cautiously sought her out, grumping slightly in frustration. After a few tries, he began to feed, and mother and son worked each other out. At first, she didn't know if she was doing it right, but his silence and closed eyes told her she was doing okay. Claudia grinned, kissing the skin under her lips. "That is the weirdest, coolest thing I've ever seen."

"Well I find that hard to believe," Leena sniggered, thinking back at their lives and the truly endless wonder they'd both seen together.

"Deadly serious," Claudia murmured, her eyes unmoving from the baby's head. Tiny gulps were heard throughout the room. "How does it feel?"

"Weird…" Leena frowned. "Kinda like you, but more gentle."

"Pfftt," Claudia wrinkled her nose, trying to hide the blush that spread up her chest. Before long, she felt her lip quivering again. "Fuck… I am so proud of you…"

"Claudia-" Leena tried to whine but the caretaker shook her head.

"I'm serious," Claudia said. "Let me be mushy, just this once. Please."

The begging tone to her wife's voice caused Leena to shuffle around and look her in the eye. What she wasn't expecting was the heartfelt kiss delivered to her lips. When she pulled away, she smiled and delivered another tender peck to Claudia's mouth, then looked back down at their newborn. "We have a freakin' son," Claudia chortled suddenly. Leena laughed through her nose, tiredly, and stroked the baby's soft head as he continued to feed from her breast.

"We do," she blinked. "We have a son." What Leena Donovan realized then, as she held in an overwhelmed sniff, was that these passed thirty years - they had all been worth it. She and her wife had been through too much together and the bad things? They'd made them stronger. Leaning her head against Claudia's, she sent a silent prayer of thanks to Min, the predynastic Egyptian God who, in her eyes, made this all possible.

The End.


End file.
